Breaking out of your Shell
by potat lasaro
Summary: Shy, 15 year old Nick's life will never be the same after an eventful first meeting with a young boy named Potat. Nick soon finds out that Potat is fighting to become king of the Mamodo and that he is the only one who can help him. The duo will have to overcome many adversaries while also making new friends along their way. This is a Remake of my story: Stacking The Odds. Enjoy!
1. An Awful First Day!

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to Zatch Bell.**

Character thoughts are italicized.

 **A/N: After taking a break, I have decided to rewrite this story. I had the whole story planned out, but after reading it again, I just couldn't force myself to upload it. So, here is an improved version of it. Enjoy.**

* * *

"Mr. Rosum... Mr. Rosum... Mr. Rosum!" The teacher in front of the class yelled as he smashed a ruler down onto the table.

Startled by the loud noise, a young boy with a light tan, no older than 15 years old jumped out of his seat. He had fallen asleep again during class and was caught once again. The boy stood at about 5'10" and was in pretty good shape. He had a buzz cut for his black hair, leaving about 1.5" of hair on his head. He was dressed in a red t-shirt that was covered with a black hoodie sweatshirt. He was also wearing a pair of maroon shorts along with white sneakers.

"Y-yes, Mr. Ross?" The boy asked as his face started to heat up.

Mr. Ross sighed as he looked at his student. "I'm glad you're taking my class seriously, Nick. Please, solve the equation on the board."

"R-right." Nick said, letting out a nervous chuckle. He looked up at the board and read the equation to himself. _"2X^2 +3=12+x^2. Easy."_ Nick thought to himself once he saw the equation. "The answer is x=3" He answered before the bell rang.

"That's correct." Mr. Ross replied before writing something on the board. "Now, class, before you all run off. Your homework is to review section 2.1 and to answer numbers 1-15 on page 52. We'll be going over it on Monday."

The entire class jumped out of their seats as they made a break for the door. That had been the last class of the day and now the weekend had come. Everyone was rushing to get home and do whatever they wanted.

Nick was just like the others, not wanting to be seen by his teacher, he tried to sneak past him by blending in with the class.

"Mr. Rosum, don't even think about leaving." The math teacher stated as he walked towards the door. "I'd like to talk with you."

"If this is about falling asleep again, I'm deeply sorry and it won't happen again, Mr. Ross." Nick pleaded to the teacher. He wasn't doing himself any favors though, his face was starting to turn red and his hands were sweaty.

"Please, sit down." He said as he pulled a chair up to his desk. "Nick, are you bored?" Mr. Ross asked back. He was an older man, in his late sixties and was dressed in a sweater vest with dress pants on. His hair was starting to gray now as he didn't dye it at all.

Nick was taken aback by the question, he wasn't expecting anything like that. "N-no sir! I-I just get tired often." He lied, not wanting to stand out.

Mr. Ross ran a hand through his hair before pulling a stack of papers out of his drawer. "Do you know what these are, Nick?"

"T-those are the previous tests." The boy responded as he started sweating. "H-how bad did I do, sir."

"It isn't how bad you did, it's about how well you did." The teacher remarked as he pulled Nick's test out. "You were the only student to get a 100 and you sleep through every class. Why didn't you apply for the advanced classes?"

Nick started to shake his head at that thought before coming up with an excuse. "Oh no, not me. I, I just got lucky on that test. It was just beginners luck." He explained before looking at the clock. "Um, sir, do mind if I get going? I don't want to be late."

"Of course. Good luck tonight in your game, Nick." Mr. Ross said with a smile on his face. "Oh, and don't forget what I said to you about those advanced classes. Just think about it!" He yelled down the hall as Nick continued walking.

* * *

"Great. I did too well on that test." Nick mumbled as he opened his locker and grabbed his history and math books. "I was trying to get them wrong on purpose, but I just can't. I do everything to keep the attention off of me, sit in the back, keep to myself, stay in the average level classes. Only thing that doesn't help is playing basketball." He said, shutting his locker door and heading to the front exit.

"Hi, Nick, what did Mr. Ross want?" A voice asked as he passed through the front door. Sitting on the front steps of the school was a girl dressed in a plain gray T-shirt covered by a black warm up jacket and black jeans. On her feet were black sneakers, but in her hands were blue basketball shoes. She had short, blonde hair that ended in bangs at her shoulders.

"O-oh, hi, Sa-Sarah." Nick replied sheepishly as he scratched the back of his head. "Mr. Ross just wanted to talk about me falling asleep."

Sarah stood up off the stairs and looked at Nick. "You really got to quit falling asleep in class. Coach might not let you play if you keep getting in trouble." She teased before flashing him a smile.

Nick felt his heart rate increase and his face heat up once Sarah smiled his way and turned towards the school to hide his face. "Y-yeah you're right, but y-you know me. A-always falling asleep." He stuttered before letting out a nervous laugh.

"So, are you heading to the gym? If so, then maybe we could walk over there together. I was going to practice for my game tomorrow." Sarah offered as she walked closer to Nick.

Nick however was starting to get too nervous to talk. "S-s-sorry, but I need to run home first. I forgot my shoes for the game tonight." He lied before running off in his house's direction.

"Oh, alright, maybe next time." Sarah sighed as she kicked a rock and started to walk to the gym. "That boy can be crazy."

* * *

"Stupid, stupid, stupid!" Nick yelled at himself, continuing to belittle himself. "Why do I get nervous around everyone? She only wanted to walk to the gym and now she probably thinks I'm some weirdo." He said sighing while kicking a rock. "Why is it so hard for me to just be around people without thinking they're going to judge me?"

Nick's train of thoughts were lost however once he heard a commotion happening in the nearby park. "You think you can stand up to me?" Questioned a rather large child. Nick had seen the kid in the hallways at school and heard he was a year younger than him. He had a buzz cut even shorter than Nick's and wore a wife beater along with jeans.

Standing across from him was a little kid who looked no older than 6 or 7 years old. "I don't want to fight you, but if you keep picking on these smaller children then you leave me no choice." The kid responded. He was dressed in what looked to be a purple training gi with a red obi.

The boy's hair was also strange looking. It looked like a messy, self-cut hairstyle where the hair flew in multiple directions, but had three large spikes shooting off the right side of his head. Both his hair and eyes were black and he had a peach like skin complexion.

Nicks slowly walked over to the area where a crowd was now forming. Once he was within seeing distance, he could make out the two people more clearly now. The small boy was only at waist level of the bully and in Nick's eyes, stood no chance.

" _That kid is crazy, he's going to get himself hurt!"_ Nick thought as he watched the young boy duck underneath a punch, but then was immediately kicked in the chin, sending him backwards and onto his back. _"This... this is ridiculous! That kid looks to be the same age as my younger brother!"_ Nick's thoughts rang through his head as he started to get pissed off.

" _I know I'll regret this later."_ Nick mentally sighed as he walked forward and in front of the boy on the ground. "H-hey, why don't... y-you pick on someone your own size." Nick told the bully, trying to sound brave but it came off as timid.

"Hey, I know you." The bully stated as he rubbed his chin while thinking. "You're that strange kid from school. The one who avoids everyone because you're so stuck up. Why would you want to help this brat?"

"I-I'm not... stuck up." Nick whispered to himself as he looked at the ground. Before he could say anything, a fist met the side of his cheek and he felt his body land on the ground.

"Did you not hear me!?" The boy asked while cracking his knuckles. "Why do you want to help this brat?"

Nick just laid there on the ground as he contemplated that very question. _"Why do I want to help? I've seen him beat up countless others and I've wanted to help, but... I always told myself someone else could help. Not this time, I'm tired of running away."_ He thought to himself as he slowly got up off the ground only to be pushed back down by the boot of the bully.

"Tell me, otherwise you aren't moving." He told Nick with a smirk on his face. The pressure from his boot then increased a little every few seconds as he kept Nick against the ground.

"I-I... don't need to tell you." Nick said as he forced his way off the ground. "I'm tired of you pushing these kids around, it's time for you to get a taste... of your own medicine!" Nick yelled as he shocked everyone, including himself as he punched the boy square in the jaw.

The bully took a step backwards as he spit some blood onto the ground. "You know, I was going to go easy on you. I've been told to be nice to you. Some people like to say that you're special for some reason, explains why you act the way you do. But now, I'm going to beat the living hell out of you!"

Nick gulped as his knees started to shake. His hands were also sweating and he felt like he was going to throw up. The jolt of confidence he had when he threw that punch was gone just as fast as it came. "I-I-I'm so-sorry. I don't know what came over me!" Nick cried out as he threw his hands up to cover his face.

Nick watched as the boy's fist came right for him, but before it could hit him, it was stopped. Opening his eyes, Nick noticed a police officer holding back the boy's arm as he gave a stern look at both boys. "I was told that some fight was going down here. I'm very disappointed in both of you." He said as he grabbed Nick as well. "You both are coming with me, you're going to call your parents from the station.

As the three started to walk to the police car, they were blocked by a sea of children. "You can't take Nick! He protected us!" One boy cried out as he wiped tears from his eyes.

"Yeah! That mean one was beating us up all day and that one stopped him." A little girl, no older than four said as she pointed at both boys.

"H-he was only doing the right thing." Another voice stated from the crowd. "He never fought anyone before."

The kids continued to move forward until they surrounded the officer. "If you're taking Nick, we're going with you!" They cried out.

The officer sighed as he let go of the two boys. "You two got off lucky. If I ever see you two fighting again, I won't be so nice. So scram!" The officer told them as he climbed into his car and drove away.

Nick sighed as he tried to get his heartrate under control again. From the moment the officer showed up, Nick's heart was beating at a mile a minute as all he could think about was how much trouble he was in. Before he could say anything, he was lifted off the ground by the boy next to him.

"You got lucky this time. But listen up, next time I won't be so forgiving." He finished talking as he tossed Nick onto the ground and walked away.

Nick shakily got up off the ground as he looked for the boy from before. Seeing him still on the ground, Nick went over and helped him up. "Hey, are you alright? Have some water." Nick said as he pulled a bottle of water out of his backpack.

Taking the liquid, the boy started to chug it down until he was practically trying to inhale the bottle. "You didn't need to step in." The boy finally spoke as he placed the bottle down. "I had it under control, he was going to regret ever picking on those kids."

Nick couldn't help but let out a slight chuckle at the boy. "That kid was twice your size, you shouldn't pick fights with people like that. It's alright to be brave, just don't be stupid." Nick told the boy as he started to wipe blood off of his elbow.

"Yeah, but you acted stupidly by getting involved." The young boy stated as he looked at the cuts and bruises on Nick. "If you didn't get involved, everything would be fine."

" _Gee, thanks."_ Nick thought to himself as he started to sweat. "Next time I'll stay out of it, if you don't fight anyone like that. Deal?" He asked, extending his hand out to the boy.

"Deal!" The boy said while laughing. He grabbed Nick's hand with both of his and started to shake it. "My name's Potat. Potat Lasaro. I'm new around here. You see, I've been traveling looking for something."

"Really? A boy your age traveling around. But anyways, my name's Nick Rosum, but you can call me Nick." He said while laying in the grass. "So, what are you looking for?" Nick asked before his watch started to go off. "Oh no! I'm going to be late!" Nick yelled as he jumped up and sprinted in the direction of the gym.

Potat started to pull a maroon colored book out of the back of his shirt as he started to speak. "Well, I'm looking to find someone who can read-" Potat started before he noticed Nick was gone. ""Hmm, I wonder where he ran off to?" The boy wondered as he walked off looking for the older boy.

* * *

"Today just couldn't get any worse." Nick thought to himself as he sprinted into the gym. "First I was called out among the whole class, then Sarah had to talk to me, followed up by that fight, and now I'm going to be late for the game." He said, mentally cursing himself as he slammed the door to the locker room open to find the whole team already inside.

'Hey! Look who decided to finally show up!" A rather tall boy joked as he put his arm around Nick's neck. "We all were betting that you wouldn't show up."

Nick's face started to turn a light shade of red once everyone started to stare at him. "Oh, I would never miss a game. I was just running a little late." He said, sounding nervous. He then went to rub the back of his neck to help relieve himself.

"Hey, what happened to your elbow?" The boy asked as he grabbed it once he noticed the blood on it. "You alright, it looks pretty bad."

Pulling his arm back, Nick sighed as he forgot about the cuts and bruises from earlier. "That, oh, well, I got it when I fell on the way here. You see, Mr. Ross held me after class and once he let me go, I sprinted to me house to get my shoes, but I tripped and fell on the pavement." Nick told them, hoping they would buy his lie.

The boy laughed as he slapped Nick on the back. "You should really be more careful. Next time, things could be worse." He then started to walk away with the rest of the team as they headed up some stairs. "Hurry up and change, Coach wants us up there in five minutes."

"R-right." Nick nodded as he walked to his locker and opened it. He then pulled out his silver home uniform and threw the familiar jersey and shorts on. He then laced up his blue basketball shoes and sprinted up the stairs.

* * *

Nick sighed as he sat at the end of his team's bench. "Another game, same old playing time. None." Nick muttered under his breath as he watched the other team drive right to the hoop. "It's for the best though, I'm nowhere near as good as the others."

Just then, the team's captain, Marcus, fell to the floor grabbing his knee in pain. "Timeout!" The coach yelled as everyone helped Marcus to the bench. They laid him down and kept his right knee comfortable. "How are you Marcus?"

Marcus was sweating and his face was showing that he was in a lot of pain. "N-no good coach." He said through grit teeth. "I-I thought I heard it pop out there. I'm done for today, I don't know how long I'll be out."

The coach stood there, holding his chin as he pondered over what to do next. _"30 seconds left in the game and down by six. Today hasn't been our day, two kids left during warm-ups, they caught a bug in school and couldn't play. Then our leading scorer, Ben fouled out and now this. We need a spark."_ He thought as he looked at the remaining players on the bench. "Rosum, get in the game!" He said while slapping the boy on the back.

Nick started to shake knowing that he was going in. The only time he actually played was during blowouts and he didn't really know the plays that well. "B-but coach, you said so yourself, I'm not ready to play yet. I'm still learning the plays."

"Forget about the plays." Coach said as he placed his hands on Nick's shoulders. "I've seen you play here by yourself after practice, you have skill that is up there with Marcus and Ben and they're both a year older than you. I want you to go out there and play like you're the only one on the court. Alright go, get them." He said as he pushed Nick towards the court.

" _Okay, j-just relax and play like you know to."_ He told himself as he went to inbound the ball. Seeing Dom, a sharpshooter open in the corner for a three, he chucked the ball to him. "Dom! Heads up!" Nick yelled, getting his attention.

The rather short kid caught the ball and shot it all in one swift motion. By the time the defender got to his man, Dom already had shot the ball. The crowd watched as it swished right into the net cutting the lead in half.

The team immediate ran back on defense, not taking any chances. That is, except Nick. The boy ran up and started to pressure the ball, not giving them any chance to get it in. With no timeouts remaining, the other team tried to pass the ball in, only to have Nick swipe it away.

Nick bent down and grabbed the loose ball and drove right to the hoop with no one guarding him. The ball rolled right into the hoop, exciting the crowd as the home team now trailed by one. Nick couldn't help but smile as he felt himself enjoying this sensation.

He looked up to the scoreboard to see how much time remained. _"78-77, 10 seconds remaining."_ Nick thought as he read the board. "Just one more basket." He said to himself as he swiped the ball away again. Nick felt his heart racing and couldn't get himself to shoot it this time as he was covered.

Seeing Will run back up the court to help out, Nick dished the ball back to him, but he was covered immediately. Nick started to run to the basket, trying to get open, but something in the crowd caught his eyes.

Standing in the stands was the same boy from earlier, standing up and waving a flag with a crudely drawn Picture of Nick's face on it. "Come on, Nick! Woo hoo! Show them what you're made of."

Seeing that embarrassed Nick and made him lose his concentration. Due to this, he didn't notice Will's pass to him and the ball sailed out of bounds just as the buzzer sounded.

"I-I'm sorry guys." Nick said, not looking up at them out of fear that they hated him. "I cost us the game."

"Lighten up." Marcus said as he wobbled up to Nick. He was being helped by Ben and Will as his knee was swollen. "If it wasn't for you, we wouldn't even have a shot. You brought us back. We should be thanking you." He said, tapping his fist into Nick's shoulder.

"Yeah. I never would have thought you could play like that. You stole the ball twice in the span of 10 seconds. That was great, plus you made me look good with that pass to me for a three." Dom joked as he gave Nick a noogie.

"T-thanks, guys." Nick said as he wiped away the tears he had in his eyes. "I'll be better next time." He said before walking to the showers.

* * *

An hour had passed since the game ended and Nick was just showering as he always waited until everyone else left before he showered. "I blew that game." Nick said while sighing. "It's all because of that kid too. If I didn't notice him, I catch the pass and we win."

Nick then heard the door open followed by the sound of footsteps. "Hello! Is anyone in here!?" The voice yelled out, belonging to Potat. "I'm looking for someone named Nick!"

Nick remained silent, he didn't want anyone to know he was here. _"He'll go away sooner or later. Just enjoy the warm water."_

"Hey, whoever is in the shower, either hurry up or I'm coming in. I need to know something!" Potat yelled out as he faked walking towards the shower.

"Don't come in!" Nick yelled out as he shut the shower off and dried off. He quickly changed into his clothes from before the game and stepped outside. "What do you want?" Nick asked, still upset about the game.

"Well, you never read this for me like I asked." Potat said, pulling a maroon book from out of his gi. "It's why I've been traveling. I'm looking for someone to read it to me."

"If it makes you go away right now, then fine." Nick said, snatching the book from Potat and opening it to the first page. "This doesn't make any sense, none of these symbols belong to a language I've ever heard of." He said as he flipped through the pages. Finally, he landed on a page where the symbols were glowing a brighter color than the rest. "Hey, this one I can read. It says FIORE."

Nothing happened once he said, but Potat jumped right into his face. "No, no, no. Read it with more emotion than that." Potat pleaded as he placed his hands together. "Pleassssseeeeee." He begged, getting onto his knees.

"Fine, FIORE!" Nick yelled at the top of his lungs.

Acting instinctively, Potat moved his right hand away from the boy in front of him and pointed it at a shower. A ball which looked to be made of pure fire emerged from his hand and collided with the shower, destroying it.

"W-what... what, are you?" Nick asked as he dropped the book and slowly walked away.

* * *

 **A/N: Here is the first chapter remade. I hope you enjoy it much more than the original version. Like I said before, I had the whole story planned out and a rough draft of it done, but after reading my already published chapters, I just had to fix them. There will be some changes made between my original story and this remade story.**

 **Thank you for reading this, please leave a review of what you all thought about it.**

 **Next time: After seeing the explosion caused by Potat, nick begins to grow weary of the boy. Just as things start to become as normal as they could, they're suddenly attacked by a duo. Unsure of what to do, Nick and Potat are backed into a corner.**


	2. The Cursed Book! Research at the Museum!

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to Zatch Bell**

 **Last time, Nick had one of the worst days of his life. Anything that could go wrong, did go wrong. He's now shocked by the sight right before his eye, a young boy shooting fire out of his hand.**

* * *

Acting instinctively, Potat moved his right hand away from the boy in front of him and pointed it at a shower. A ball which looked to be made of pure fire emerged from his hand and collided with the shower, destroying it.

"W-what... what, are you?" Nick asked as he dropped the book and slowly walked away. "Y-you're a monster!"

Potat turned to face Nick before smiling. "No, not a monster. A Mamodo." He said playfully.

"Ma... modo?" Nick asked, a puzzled expression on his face. "What is that? And why did you shoot that blast thing!"

"I guess I should have explained." Potat sheepishly replied, rubbing the back of his neck. "Every 1000 years, 100 Mamodo children are chosen to fight each other. The last one standing becomes king for the next 1000 years. However, we can't use our attacks unless a human can read our books and cast a spell." He explained as he picked up the dropped book.

"I don't believe you." Nick said as he sat down. "That whole story sounds ridiculous. Why send children off to fight each other for the title of king. Wouldn't it be better to just hold a vote?"

"I can't explain it, but ever since the existence of my home world this trial has occurred. It's almost like it's a trial created by the gods for some strange reason." Potat explained as he sat down next to the boy.

"So, you want me to believe that I'm the only person on the entire planet that can help you." Nick said, still not believing the story. "Can't you go find someone else to fight with you?"

Potat sat there with a smile on his face while he shook his head. "Nope. Each book can only be read by one human. Guess what, you're the lucky one."

"Oh yayyyy." Nick sarcastically cried out as he laid on his back.

* * *

"David, a Mamodo is nearby. I felt them cast a spell just recently." A child dressed in a black hooded cloak. Under the cloak was a purple T-shirt and ripped jeans. His hair was greasy and hung down over his eyes and he had a short stature. When he spoke, a slight lisp could be heard.

David sighed as he looked at his partner. "If you say so, Garbu. This better not be another false alarm." David was a tall and muscular man, who could be confused for a professional body builder. He was dressed in a pair of black jeans with a wife beater. Over that was a black leather jacket. He had no hair except for a goatee and had a scar that ran down the middle of his face.

"No, no. This is no false alarm." Garbu replied as he climbed up onto David's motorcycle. "They are new to the fight, I can feel it through the power of their spell. Now is the time to attack."

David reached into a bag he had with him and pulled out two helmets. "I really spoil you don't I?" He said starting his motorcycle. "Anyone else would make you wait until morning."

"Ahh, but I know you, David. You want the prize that comes with winning the war." Garbu said, accidently spitting on David as he spoke. "You were a world class athlete before your tragic accident. Your drive will make us stronger."

* * *

"So, Nick, where do I get to stay at your house?" Potat asked as he climbed up onto Nick's shoulders. "Do we have to share a room, or do I get my own?"

Nick started to get annoyed by Potat and tossed him off of his shoulders. "You aren't coming home with me. You can go find somewhere to stay, but keep your crazy monstrous powers away from me." Nick told him as he walked out of the shower room with his stuff.

"But, Nick, we're a team! You can read my book, no one else can help me!" Potat yelled as he followed Nick. "Come on, are you really going to leave me all alone, scared and defenseless?"

Nick snorted at that once he walked out the front doors. "You are not defenseless. You can fire off fireballs at will. I'm pretty sure you can survive on your own."

"B-b-but, I can't shoot them unless you read my spells!" The Mamodo cried out as he grabbed ahold of Nick's leg. "You got to let me come with you."

Nick looked at the kid and couldn't help but feel sorry for him. Sighing, Nick grabbed him off of his leg and lifted him up. "Fine, you can stay with me. Just until we find someone else to read that book."

"Oh thank you, you won't regret this decision of yours. Don't worry about myself, you won't even realize I'm there." Potat replied as he jumped out of Nick's hands. "Now, what are we having for dinner?"

* * *

"Garbu, you said they were here!" David yelled through grit teeth as he punched in a locker. "I see no signs of anyone here."

"Calm down you buffoon." Garbu responded as he inspected the area. "Look around and you will see that they were here, but have left by now."

"S-so, what are we doing about it?" The man asked as he leaned against the now damaged locker. "Is there a way you can track their scent?"

Garbu closed his eyes for a second before hitting his partner over the head. "I am a Mamodo, not some Blood Hound! The only way to find them is to wait until they cast another spell."

David sighed as he started to head for the exit. "So, it was another false alarm. How many does that make, three this week?"

"Shut it and just get your motorcycle." Garbu ordered as he shivered in front of the school. "It is getting cold out, you know I can't stand the cold."

"This prize better be worth it. I didn't sign up to babysit some snot nosed brat." David muttered as he walked across the street to find his motorcycle. "This brat acts like he is higher than all of us, like he's actually important. Last time I checked, only the last surviving child is important."

"What took so long, I think I'm catching a cold because of you!" Garbu yelled as he sneezed to emphasize his cold. "Hurry up and get us home!"

As they were driving, a thought came into David's head. "Garbu, I'm sorry, but I forgot about what's so important about this battle. Mind explaining again."

"You really are an idiot, you know that, right?" Garbu responded before sighing. "Listen up, so that you don't waste anymore of my time. This battle takes place among 100 Mamodo children with the last remaining one being named king. The only way to eliminate a Mamodo is by burning their books."

"You mean these books." David interrupted as he carelessly handled Garbu's dark purple book. "I didn't realize how important these were."

"S-stop that! You might drop it and ruin it. Then my chances of becoming King will be gone forever!" Garbu yelled out as he tried to swipe the book.

Pulling it away from the worried child, David stopped the bike before getting off of it. "This book is very important to you, it would be a shame if it got ruined." He smirked as he watched the boy squirm as the book was tossed back and forth. "If you don't want this book getting ruined, you'll listen to me from now on, got it!?"

"Y-yes, but please, be more careful with that book you meathead!" Garbu yelled out before covering his mouth. "I-I mean... partner. That's what I meant, you're not a meathead."

"That is exactly what I'm talking about. All the other teams treat each other as equals, but you treat me like a lackey who does your dirty work." David said before starting up the motorcycle again.

Garbu was starting to sweat now as they continued driving. He never thought of David as having any brains and figured he could use it to his advantage. "B-but, David, we are equals."

"Are we?" He responded back, raising his eyebrow while glancing at the Mamodo. "Last I checked, you used me as a shield against attacks. Then you told me to attack the other Mamodo!"

"But, you always praised your natural athletic ability and your rock hard body. I assumed you wanted to show me what you were made of." Garbu said, lying through his teeth as he tried to please the man who held his fate in his hands.

"I'm done with that. And I'm done with this talk." David answered as he sped up the motorcycle.

* * *

"Welcome home, Nick. That was quite a game you guys had." Mr. Rosum said as he watched Nick walk through the kitchen door.

"Oh, uh, thanks dad." Nick said as he started to sweat. Thinking of an excuse for Potat to stay at his house was hard. _"What about this, 'dad, I met this monster child who shoots fire. Can he stay with us?' No, that won't do. What if I say he's a foreign exchange student? Yeah, that sounds good."_

"Hi, my name's Potat." The cheerful boy spoke as he walked through the door. "Nick said I could stay here for a while."

"Ahh, you were supposed to stay outside!" Nick yelled as he looked back and forth between his dad and Potat. "I-I can explain, dad." Nick said as he hung his head low.

"I'm listening." His father responded as he got up from the table.

"Well, I met him on the way to basketball this afternoon and it turns out he's homeless so I offered him a place to stay for the time being." Nick rambled off, only stopping to breathe once he was finished.

"I see. So, Potat? That was your name right?" Mr. Rosum asked, receiving a nod back from the boy. "Do you have any nearby family? They might be worried for you."

"No, I don't have any family at all." Potat responded before running back to Nick. "But, Nick acts like a brother to me. He even fought some kid earlier."

Raising an eyebrow, Mr. Rosum stared at Nick before diverting his gaze back to Potat. "He did? That doesn't really sound like him. The only people he ever helps are his two brothers. You seem like a good enough kid. You can stay as long as you like."

* * *

"Hey, Nick, where are you off to?" Potat asked as he was awoken by the noise of Nick getting ready. "Wherever it is, can I come?"

The weekend passed by quickly as Nick spent all of his free time trying to discover the secrets hidden inside of the book. The by was now getting ready for school as he put on blue basketball shorts along with a black T-shirt and a gray sweatshirt. Nick tried to ignore him, but realized it would be better to tell him no. "I'm going to school, you can't come." He said coldly before slamming the door behind him.

"School?" Potat asked himself before getting out of bed. "I love school. I bet Nick will be really glad to see me there." The child said as he ran out the bedroom and followed Nick from a distance. "I can't wait to see the look on his face when he sees me walking in."

* * *

" _Hmmm. This book is really strange."_ Nick thought as he flipped through it. _"I can't read anything except for that one word. Fiore. I wonder if the book acts like a video game, you have to do certain things before unlocking the next level."_ He continued thinking until he realized what was happening. _"Wait a second, why do I care about this book in the first place."_ He asked himself before closing it. "Hopefully I can find someone else to read this thing, and soon."

"What was that, Nick?" Sarah asked as she looked over at Nick's desk. She had on a long sleeved stripped shirt and a blue skirt along with brown cowboy boots. "What book are you having trouble with, maybe I can help?"

Nick mentally face palmed. _"Damn it. I forgot all about class. I was so distracted by the book, I wasn't paying attention to anyone around me."_ He thought to himself as he tried to make up an excuse. "Um, well, you see. My brother found this very old book at a flea market and picked it up for me. He thought it would be fun to see me struggle trying to read it." He said while scratching the back of his head.

"Here, let me see." She said, trying to reach for the maroon book. "Wow, for an old book, it's in pretty good condition. Probably nicer than our textbooks." She joked before flipping through the pages. "I guess you're right. It is hard to read, even I haven't seen a language like this."

"Yeah, part of me thinks my brother is just pulling my leg." Nick remarked as he reached for the book. "I think he found it at some flea market like he says, but it probably isn't part of any known language. It is probably just one of those game books just coded."

"Hmm, now I'm curious about it." She remarked as she leaned back in her seat. "I wonder if my father has seen anything like it."

"Your father?" Nick asked, confused over how her father could help him out at all. "Could he really decipher the book? It's kind of important. I have a bet going with my brother to see how long it takes me."

"Yeah, he sees stuff like this all the time. He recently got a job at the Harvard Museum of Natural History. If something like that book has existed for years, he might have seen something similar." She said sighing before sitting back up. "After school we'll head over there."

"R-really? I can go by myself if you're busy." Nick said as he tried getting out of the situation.

Sarah lightly tapped his shoulder before laughing. "Oh no, I'm not getting left out on this. Now that I'm interested in finding out that language, I'll be helping you out. We're a team now, we help each other out, just like how a basketball team helps each other get better." She said, winking at Nick. "Meet me in front of the school at 2:00. We'll take the subway there."

"Uh, sure." Was all Nick could muster as he faced forward again and pretended to listen to the class. _"Great, now there is no way I can get rid of this book now. Plus, other people are getting dragged into this mess. Next time I see, Potat, I'll give him a piece of my mind."_

Unfortunately for Nick, the wait to see his new nuisance wouldn't be long. A loud knock came from the other side of the door. Before anyone could react, the door slowly opened to reveal a young boy on the outside.

"Excuse me, but a boy named Nick wouldn't be in here, would he?" The boy asked as he bowed to the teacher. "My name's Potat, I thought I'd surprise him."

" _You've got to be kidding me! What's he doing here!?"_ Nick thought as he slouched deeper into his seat, hoping to hide his face.

"Psst, Nick, who's this kid? How does he know you?" Sarah asked as she leaned over towards Nick's desk. "I've never seen him around."

"Oh, he's a cousin of mine who lives far away. He's staying with my family for a short time." Nick responded before slouching even deeper. "He just doesn't realize that when I say 'stay home' I mean it."

"There he is!" Potat yelled before running over to Nick's seat. "Hi! I followed you to class today. I figured we could spend some time together before we work on figuring out my book."

"His book? I thought your brother found it?" Sarah asked as she gave Nick a questioning look.

"Well, Potat is like a brother to me, so I just call him my brother instead of a cousin." Nick quickly lied before facing Potat. "You can't come here! Go home!"

"Ahem." The teacher said, clearing her throat. "Nick, is this child related to you?"

"Y-yes, ma'am." Nick said as he felt his face start to heat up. "He'll be on his way home right now."

"There's no need. I would never make a young child walk home unattended. As long as he's quiet he can stay, but don't make this a habit." The teacher said before facing her whiteboard.

"Hi there. I'm Potat." The child said as he faced Sarah and extended a hand. "What's your name?"

"I'm Sarah. A classmate and friend of Nick's." She said before accepting Potat's outstretched hand. "So, that book Nick has belongs to you?"

"Yeah, that book is mine. Nick's helping me learn it, thought to be honest, he can't even read it." He responded, getting a giggle out of the girl. "So, Nick actually has friends? He seems too stuck up to have any."

"Yeah, he has a lot of them. Most of the school likes him. He just doesn't interact with us because he's a stick in the mud." She answered jokingly.

"I'm right here you know." Nick muttered as he faced down at his notes. "Potat, don't bother anyone, we have a test coming up and need to prepare."

"See, a stick in the mud." Sarah teased once again before looking at her notebook. "I think he should loosen up a little."

* * *

"Hey, hey, Nick, where are you heading off to?" Potat yelled as he chased Nick down the hall. "Slow down, I'm not as tall as you!"

Stopping on a dime, Potat ran right into Nick's legs before Nick crouched down to be eye level with the Mamodo. "I'm meeting Sarah at 2pm to try and figure out the book. You on the other hand will be heading home."

"Why can't I come? It is my book!" Potat asked before coming to a conclusion. "Is she your girlfriend? Is that why I can't come?"

Nick's face turned a deep shade of red once he heard the comment and began trying to calm himself down. "No. of course not." He replied calmly before picking Potat up by the back of his gi. "I just don't need you embarrassing me."

"Oh please, Nick, let me come. I promise I won't be a bother. It'll be like I'm not even there." Potat pleaded as they walked out the front doors. "Please! Please! Please!"

"For the last time, no! Now head home!" Nick cried out, catching the attention of Sarah.

"There you two are. I've been waiting." She said while standing up. "Hasn't anyone ever told you not to make a lady wait?"

"S-sorry. Potat was giving me hard time about him heading home." Nick said, glaring at the boy once he said the last part.

"He can come along if he wants, it is his book. He should learn about it as well." She said, leading them towards the subway. "Hurry up, we need to get there before my dad leaves."

"Hehehe. Looks like I'm coming." Potat said as he stuck out his tongue. "Don't worry, I'll give you some space with your girlfriend."

Nick just shut his eyes and pinched the bridge of his nose as he walked forward, doing his best to ignore the Mamodo. "For the last time, she isn't my girlfriend. She is a girl and she considers herself my friend, but she is not my girlfriend."

"Sure she isn't." Was Potat's response before sprinting after the blonde.

* * *

"The museum is only a short walk from here." Sarah explained as they left the subway. "We should be able to make it in about five minutes if we hurry."

"I never realized how far this place actually was." Nick panted as he tried to keep up with his classmate. "You know, it would be easier for me if you weren't riding on me!" He snapped before tossing Potat off of his back.

"Hey, what was that for!? I was very comfortable riding on your back." Potat cried out as he stood up. "Just because you're upset that I came along, don't take it out on me."

"My life was easy and normal before you came into it. Before, all I had to worry about was trying to not stand out." Nick said as the duo crossed the street and saw the museum. "Now, I'm being dragged into this war that'll ruin my life."

"How will this ruin your life?" Potat fired back as they made their way to the entrance. "It's not like your life is at risk."

"If you haven't noticed, I don't like being the center of attention. Now, we're dragging other people into this whole thing." Nick said, letting out a sigh. "Look, I'm just stressed out. Please, just don't do anything that will get us in trouble."

Potat mock saluted his partner before giving him a grin. "Don't worry, I'll be on my best behavior. You won't even know I'm here."

"There you guys are!" Sarah yelled as she ran up to them. "I thought you two got lost when we left the subway. I was about to go back over that way, but here you are."

"Yeah, we got stuck at a few crosswalks and fell behind a little." Nick lied as the three of them walked into the building. "Wow, your dad really works here?"

"Yeah, he practically runs this whole place. He actually runs most of the museum." She said before flashing a badge to security.

The guards let Sarah through without any complaints, but stopped Nick and Potat before they could follow her. "No passes, no entry. You can buy them at the desk over there." A tall man stated as he pointed to the ticket desk.

"David, it's alright, they're my guests." Sarah stated as she flashed a smile at the security guard. "My father said they could come in."

"Y-yes Ms. Troy." The guard apologized before letting the two boys through. "I'm sorry for my rudeness. Please say hello to your father for me."

"Sure." Sarah said as she waved back to the two guards. "Let's see. It's 3:30 now. My dad gets off from work at 5:00. So we have some time to just look around."

"Sure, that sounds fine." Nick said as he followed the girl through the entrance. "Is there any certain exhibits you want to see?"

"No. I've seen them so often when I come and visit my father, that he actually has allowed me to work here in the summer." She said, grabbing three maps from the visitor center. "He asked if I wanted to do tour groups to make some easy money."

"Wow, you must really enjoy History to want to spend your whole summer here." Nick said, before being punched by Potat.

"Don't question what she likes. She's willing to help us." Potat hissed before acting like nothing happened.

Sarah laughed at the question as they walked into an exhibit about Asia. "Yeah, I've also had an interest in it. Learning about how far we've come as a race and just learning about the improvements and how people shaped our world into what it is today One day I plan to travel the world studying old ruins."

The three spent the day looking through each exhibit until they looked at the time. "Oh, it's already 4:45. We should head to my dad's office before he leaves. Come on." Sarah said as she started to sprint up a side set of stairs marked 'Employees only'.

The group had to run up three sets of stairs before coming to a hallway lined with doors. "So, do one of these rooms belong to your father?" Nick asked as he read the names off of each door.

"Yeah. He has his own office on this floor. The other rooms belong to some of the professors from Harvard." Sarah explained as she opened a door. "This is his office. He always comes here at 5:00, so we'll wait here until he shows up."

* * *

Minutes passed as they sat in the chairs that littered the office. Finally, a tall man walked in, surprised to see his daughter there. He had a gray suit coat with black dress pants on. His hair was smooth and combed back, showing his professionalism. Under his suit coat he had a white undershirt along with a blue tie.

"S-Sarah, what brings you here?" Dr. Troy asked before sitting down next to his daughter. "I wasn't expecting any company today."

"Hi, dad. I actually stopped by because my friend, Nick, here has a question about a book he has." She explained while pointing to the boy across the room. "Nick, get the book out."

"R-right!" Nick practically shouted as he was startled by the command. Reaching into his backpack, he pulled out the maroon colored book and handed it over to Sarah's dad. "Dr. Troy, I haven't seen anything like it. Even Sarah couldn't read in school. We were wondering if you have ever seen text like this."

Looking through the book, Dr. Troy was startled by the text he saw written on the pages. He quickly closed the book before wiping the sweat from his brow. "I-I've actually seen something like this before. Back before I graduated from college, I was on an excavation for an internship. While out in South America, we found a strange tablet with the same writing on it. The villagers told us the tablet was cursed as they heard screams coming from it at night." He explained, stopping to take a sip of water. "Being a young man like myself, I didn't want to risk anything so I left the tablet there and never spoke of that experience to anyone."

"So, this language seems to be commonly found across the world if you found it inscribed in tablets." Nick reasoned as he was handed the book back.

"No. It doesn't seem too common. In fact, I recommend staying as far away from that book as you can." Dr. Troy reasoned before he started to pack his work bag. "I don't know how you acquired it, or how much you paid for it, but get rid of it immediately. Nothing good will possibly come from it."

"D-dad, are you sure about that?" Sarah asked as she stood up. "How can something that can't even be read dangerous?"

"It can be. Please, all three of you, stay away from that book." He said, standing up. "Sarah, I know you sometimes stay here after closing, I trust that you and your friends won't do anything wrong here."

"N-no, nothing will go wrong. I'll just show him the exhibits and then we'll leave." Sarah explained before hugging her father. "We won't be here much longer."

Once the door shut behind them, Potat sat up out of his chair and hit Nick over the head. "Why did you let him bad talk my book!? You know it isn't dangerous, you've read it before!" He yelled before hands clamped over his mouth.

"Keep it down!" Nick hissed, keeping his hands clamped over the Mamodo's mouth. "We don't need others to hear."

"Nick, did Potat just say you can read the book?" Sarah asked as she sat back down. "I thought you said you couldn't read it. You weren't lying, were you?"

"N-no, of course not." Nick quickly defended himself while waving his hands in front of his body. "I can only read one word out of the whole book."

"Oh, can you read it? I'm interested now." Sarah asked while jumping up. She went over to Nick's bag and pulled the book out. "Come on, just read the word. Pleaseeee."

Nick sighed, realizing that Potat got him into more trouble. "Fine, but we need a secluded space where nothing will get ruined."

"The basement should be fine. The museum doesn't keep anything valuable down there." She explained before pausing. "But, why does it matter where you read it?"

"Trust me, you won't want anything around us." Nick stated, sounding depressed when he answered. "Let's get this over with."

* * *

"So, we're here. Are you going to read that word or not?" Sarah impatiently asked as she walked around the empty room. "We have to start getting ready to leave."

"Alright, well, here goes nothing." Nick muttered as he opened the book. To his amazement, the book started to glow as he flipped through the pages. "FIORE!" He yelled with all his might.

Potat raised his hand out as a ball of fire started to form in it. He moved his hand to a corner of the room with nothing in it and shot the blast off with ease. "See, that's why the book is special." The boy cheerfully stated as he walked over to Sarah.

"I-I think I need to lay down for a minute." Sarah muttered out loud before collapsing onto her knees. "W-what did I just see?"

"It's a long story, but I think you want to know." Nick said, receiving a head nod from his classmate. "Okay, I didn't believe it when I first heard it, but I'm slowly getting used to it. This is why I want to translate the book, to give it to someone else." He stated before going into detail about the Mamodo and their battle to become King.

* * *

"David, I felt them. They slipped up again and they're nearby." Garbu said as he slid down the railing. "We should hurry before they're gone."

"Not now." David sternly replied as he cleaned off the grime left behind from his partner. "I told you, I don't get off of work until 7:00 pm. Once my shift is done, then we can hunt for your fellow Mamodo. I cannot risk losing my job."

"B-but, they are in the vicinity. I believe they are in the building as we speak." Garbu reasoned as he sensed for the Mamodo. "Please, we don't know if we'll ever get another chance like this one."

"I said no." David said, planting his feet in. He pulled Garbu's book out of the back of his jeans and tossed it back and forth in his hands. "I told you before, we're doing this my way from now on. Tell me where you sense the Mamodo. I'll go check on them and then we can track them after work."

Garbu smirked at this plan. "My, David, I never pictured you as someone who could think of a plan like this. I must applaud your effort. But please, hurry up, they are in the basement I believe." The mamodo stated before starting to clap.

"Keep your smart remarks to yourself, otherwise you won't be having anyone to talk to." The muscular man stated before storming off. "I am seriously growing tired of that troublesome kid. He has done nothing but be a pain in my ass."

* * *

"So, 100 Mamodo children are forced to fight every 1000 years to become king?" Sarah repeated, still unsure to believe it. "Wouldn't there be a better way to elect someone, but I'll be rooting for you Potat."

"Gee, thanks." He replied as he rubbed the back of his neck. "But, I don't want to become king. I have other plans."

Hearing this shocked the two teens as they had a perplexed look on their faces. "Uhh, Potat, if you don't want to win then why are you making me help you."

"Well, I was forced into this fight, even after I begged not to be chosen." Potat started to explain, losing his innocent look and instead holding a face that showed just how serious he was. "I plan on finding a Mamodo, one who is kind and just. One that I would be proud of making king and I will do everything in my power to make them king. All of this, so that we can have a better world."

"So, I have to fight... for someone else!?" Nick yelled out as they all heard the door open up. "Hello? Is someone there?"

Realizing that he had been caught, David slowly walked forward with his flashlight on. "I'm sorry, I heard some noises coming from down here and decided to check it out. I didn't mean to interrupt whatever you were doing with your friend Ms. Troy." David said as he started to back up slowly. "I'll leave you to your own business, but boy, I wouldn't try anything that her father would disapprove of. If you get what I mean." He teased before walking up the stairs.

Nick's face was a slight shade of red as he felt his face heat up. "What does he mean by that?"

Nick felt a slap to his shoulder and looked over, seeing that it belonged to Sarah. "Relax, he's just teasing around. That guy's like family to me, he's just looking out for me." She said before standing up. "But, I think it's time to go. We still have a train ride to catch."

* * *

"So, the Mamodo belongs to either my boss' daughter or that boy. But, who is it?" David asked himself as he walked back up the stairs. "Aw, well, at least we have an idea now."

"So, did you find them?" Garbu asked from the top of the stairs. "I hope you didn't mess up."

"Yeah, I found them. They've been at the museum the whole time," David replied as he gave a smirk to his partner. "And, I think I figured out a plan to get them."

* * *

"I know it isn't much, but, I figured after everything today, this was the least I could do." Nick rambled on as he pulled out three bags from a local hamburger shack. "I saw the place while we were heading back this way and figured it would be a good idea. Especially considering how late we'll get back."

"Thanks." The other two said as they reached for the bags. They both opened them, only for Potat to complain.

"What? These are only normal burgers." He cried out while lifting the bun and examining his food. "Where's all the toppings and why'd you only get me a small fry, but you two got mediums. It's not fair."

"Calm down. I don't know what you two liked so I got all plain burgers." Nick explained as he unwrapped his burger and bit into it. As he continued to eat, Nick noticed that Sarah was writing something down on a napkin. "Hey, Sarah, what exactly are you doing?"

"Well, take a look at it yourself." She teased, handing the napkin over to her classmate.

"Um, it's just some numbers written down." Nick answered, unsure of what was happening. "What's so special about that?"

Sarah closed her eyes and slowed her breathing before she tried to answer. "That's my phone number you idiot. This way, if either of us figure something out, we can get in touch." She said, smiling at the last part.

"Oh, okay." Nick responded as he shoved the number into his shorts' pocket. "I just figured after today, you wanted nothing to do with this book. Especially after what your dad said about it."

"No way." She said, slapping Nick on the shoulder. "I meant it before when I said it. The three of us are a team. We'll work together until Potat's dream is met."

"O-okay." Nick stuttered as a light blush started to form again.

Potat, being a little mischievous decided to have some fun at Nick's expense. "Hey, Nick, isn't this kind of like a date?" He asked before grinning at his partner.

Nick was in the middle of a bite when Potat said this and nearly choked as he started to cough like crazy once he heard Potat correctly. Once he was under control, he faced the Mamodo and swiftly hit him on the head. "Don't say things like that."

* * *

 **A/N: Chapter two is now completed. I know, two chapters in and still no first Mamodo battle. But don't worry, it will be coming soon. Honustly, I wasn't planning on including Sarah as important to the story, but I realized it could lead to good development for Nick.**

 **Thank you for reading, please leave a review for the chapter.**

 **Next time: Nick continues to search for any secrets about the book while Garbu and David finally launch their attack. Catching Nick by surprise, how will he get out of this rotten situation?**


	3. A Slimy Situation

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to Zatch Bell**

 **Last time, Nick started his research of trying to translate the book so he could pass it onto someone else. His work led to Sarah finding out about the battle for king and agreeing to help. Elsewhere, Garbu and David had finally found Potat and have begun planning their attack.**

* * *

"David, do we strike now?" Garbu asked as he and his partner stayed in the shadows. They had been watching the two teens for over a week now and they still hadn't attacked yet.

"Not yet. We still need a bit more data on them." The muscular man stated as he wrote some info down on a notepad. "Their routine is the same every day. It'll be easy to get them."

Garbu sighed as he looked up at his partner. "If you say so. I don't see why we can't attack now. We have three spells to our disposal. We can easily overpower them."

"Think of it as a sporting event. The better team doesn't tire themselves out even if they have an advantage. They plan things out." David explained as they watched the two walk into school.

"Come again, David? I don't get your sports analogies."

"We have the better player, but we shouldn't tire ourselves out needlessly."

* * *

"Okay class, today we will be playing basketball in class." The teacher stated as he pulled out a basketball from a bin of equipment. "The teams have already been picked, so when I call your name, please come over here."

"Psst, hey, Nick." Dom called out as they waited for their names to be called out. "So, what's going on between you and Sarah? You two seem to be spending a lot of time together this past week."

"Huh?" Nick replied as he quickly threw his hands up in defense. "I don't know what you're talking about. She's just helping me study. The teachers are worried about my grades lately and she offered to help."

"You lucky dog." Dom said, slapping Nick on the back. "You really lucked out. She's smart, nice and pretty. I'm sure all the other guys are jealous of you."

Nick's face started to turn a light shade of red. He had never thought of what others would think about them spending so much time together while trying to figure out the book. "I never thought of her like that. Just someone who was nice enough to make sure I pass the class."

"Well, you should make a move before someone else comes along." Dom said, nudging Nick with his elbow.

"My move?" Nick asked as he gave a confused look at his teammate. "I don't get it, like a move in basketball?"

Dom sighed as he shook his head. "You really lived a sheltered life, didn't you?"

Before Nick could reply, he heard his name called out. "Rosum! Team one!" The gym teacher yelled out as Nick walked over to his team.

Looking at his team, Nick remembered that he still had to hold back as this was just for fun. No one in the class besides Dom, Sarah and himself actually played any kind of organized basketball. Luckily for him, one of them were on his team.

"Troy! Team one!" The teacher yelled out as he crossed another name off of his list. "Alright, anyone not called is on team two."

Sarah walked up to Nick and lightly slapped him on the back. "Looks like we're on the same team again. So, any luck with the book?" She asked while doing some light stretching before they started.

Nick shook his head as he tied his shoes. "Nothing. I can't find anything remotely close to it. I think I'm stuck with it. Potat's been yelling at me lately saying that I should stop thinking about finding someone else and should instead focus on helping him."

"That sounds like Potat. I still can't believe that it's been about two weeks now and we haven't made any progress." She said, having finished her stretches. "Where is the book right now?"

Nick laughed as he pictured where it was. "Potat and I hid it in my room. It's in a spot where only we would know or even think to look."

"What, you don't trust me enough to tell me?" Sarah asked as she crossed her arms and faced away from her teammate. "I thought the three of us were a team?"

"W-we are, I-I just didn't think you wanted to hear about it because it's kind of disgusting." Nick started to explain. "We hid it in a pile of Potat's old clothes." Nick whispered, leaning in close so no one could hear them.

"I see... I don't think anyone would look there." Sarah said before laughing at the thought of them digging through the clothes to get the book. "How do you two put up with the smell?"

Nick joined in laughing as well. "It isn't easy. Sometimes I sleep with a mask to keep the smell out."

* * *

"Garbu, are you in position yet?" David asked his partner from over a radio. "We only have one shot at this."

"Yes, David. I am in position." Garbu said as he sat underneath a tree. "I do not see why you made me lose my cloak. It made me seem mysterious."

"You are not supposed to look mysterious. You're supposed to look helpless." David responded as he looked back at the school. "Get ready, school just got out so they should be on their way soon."

"Got it. I see some students already passing by." Garbu responded as he hid his binoculars. "This will work out perfectly."

* * *

"So, Nick, what are your plans for tonight?" Sarah asked as they started the walk from school back to their homes. "I was wondering if you'd like to hang out sometime."

"Well, after I study that book some more, I need to get ready for tonight." Nick explained as he fixed his backpack, which was starting to slide off of his shoulder. "You see, tonight is family game night. My family's always busy, but we make it a point to all get together at least once a week and just have fun. You're more than welcome to come if you'd like." Nick offered before realizing what he had said. "I-I mean... if you don't... have anything else to do."

"Well, I don't want to be barging in on your family's time." Sarah remarked as she smiled at her classmate. "It sounds like your family looks forward to it each week. It'd feel weird if I just show up."

Nick waved his hand at the idea. "Ehh, they wouldn't mind. My brothers bring friends over to it sometimes. Besides, Potat is going to be playing as well."

"I guess when you put it that way." She thought before going into a deep trance. "It's decided, I'll come. What time is it at?"

"It starts at 7:00pm. That's when my mom usually gets home from work." Nick stated before hearing something. "D-did you hear that, or are my ears tricking me?"

"No, I heard it too. It sounded like someone crying." Sarah remarked as she walked towards the noise. "Come on, it's over this way."

"It seems to be coming from behind this tree." Nick stated as he slowly approached the noise. "H-hello? Is anyone back there?"

"Y-yes." A weak voice responded as a young boy crawled from behind tree. His clothes were all tattered and ripped. He was covered in cuts and bruises. "I-I'm sorry if I bothered you. I'm just crying myself to sleep."

"What happened to you?" Sarah asked as she walked closer to the boy. "Is there anything we could do to help?"

"N-no, I don't need help. I was just dumb and got into a fight with another kid. They were making fun of me because of how poor my family was. I had enough of him and started to fight, but I was too weak. The name's Garbu." The Mamodo explained, grinning a little once he saw Nick clenching his fists.

Nick slowly walked over to the boy and put his arm on his shoulder. "Don't worry, we'll help you out. Here, grab my hand and I'll help you stand."

Garbu reached for the outstretched hand and gave Nick a devilish smirk. "Oh this was too easy. Now!" He yelled over the radio as a new voice could be heard.

"Go Nyusen!" The voice yelled out as it appeared over the radio.

Before Nick could react, a slime like substance started to crawl off of Garbu and plant itself onto his body. The slime started to expand as it moved over the rest of his body while also hardening, making it hard for Nick to move. The substance moved quickly, covering Nick's entire body until all he could move was his head.

"W-what did you do?" Nick yelled out as he tried to break free from the substance. "L-let me go!"

"I'm terribly sorry, but I cannot do that." Garbu said as he stood up and dropped the charade. "For you see, I require the book you have in your passion."

"Y-you're a Mamodo!?" Sarah called out as she tried to slowly walk towards Nick. Quietly she whispered to him. "Don't worry I'll smash it to pieces."

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Garbu said while laughing menacingly. "The substance reacts to touch and it will cover your body upon contact. If you wish to save your friend, bring us the book at this address." He said, tossing a notecard at Sarah. "Oh, and I'd hurry. I don't like waiting."

"W-wait! Is there anything else you want instead of the book!" Sarah called out as Garbu lifted up Nick's hardened body.

"I told you already. Get the book, otherwise the boy won't make it through the night." He stated before disappearing out of sight.

"T-this is all my fault." Sarah cried out as she dropped to her knees. "If I didn't say we should check out that noise, we'd both be at home relaxing." She then grasped for the grass and tug on them until pulling them out of the ground. "I-I have to get Potat, he'd know what to do." She realized before sprinting for Nick's house.

"I don't know which house is his, but I've seen the general area of it." She said while panting. She quickly ran up to the first house she saw and knocked on the door. To her luck, Nick's dad answered the door.

"Hello, how might I help you?" He asked, not sure who this person was or why they were on his front steps. "Is everything alright?"

Sarah quickly recomposed herself as she tried to speak. "Hi, my name's Sarah, I'm a friend of Nick and Potat. I was wondering if Potat was home right now."

"Honestly, I'm not sure, I just got home a few minutes before you knocked. Hold on for one second." The man stated as he turned back into the house. "Potat! Someone's at the door for you."

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" The boy yelled as he dashed through the house. "Oh boy, no one ever comes here looking for me!" He cried out as he reached the front door. "Hi, Sarah! Where's Nick?"

"Potat, I don't have much time to explain, but get your book and meet me out front." Sarah explained with a grave expression on her face. "Please hurry."

"Right." Potat replied as his facial expressions grew serious as well. "It'll only take a minute." He stated before running into the house.

* * *

"I don't know what you're planning, but, I won't talk." Nick stated as he continued to break free.

"Stop struggling you insolent worm!" Garbu yelled as he watched the human struggle. "That slime is created from the grease inside of my very ow body. As you've seen firsthand, it covers your body until hardening to the point where you can't move. The more you struggle, the tighter it hardens."

"That doesn't even make sense. If it's already solidified, it shouldn't be able to harden more. If anything, it should weaken." Nick argued as he continued to try and break free, but only felt the substance harden more.

"Don't question the powers of the future king of the Mamodo world." Garbu proudly proclaimed as he flicked Nick in the face. "Soon, you'll be bowing down to me like the scum you are."

"Garbu, what did I tell you about touching the boy." David stated as he walked through the door.

"I-if he doesn't have the book, I am not allowed to touch him at all." Garbu stated before he slowly backed away from Nick.

"I'm sorry for his rudeness. It appears he was never taught any manners before coming to our world." David said as he offered Nick a drink with a straw so that he could drink it. "Please, have a drink. Not all of us are rude."

Hearing the voice and seeing the man's face, revealed to Nick who the man was. "Yo-you're that security guard from the museum, David was your name. W-why would you kidnap me, you seem like a nice man."

David pulled a chair up to Nick and sat next to the boy. "Please, do not associate my actions here with the life I live outside of the battle for King of the Mamodo war. You see, it is said that the partner of the next king gets a reward and my competitive spirit has me wanting it. I'm not an evil man, just highly competitive. Did you know that I was once an amazing athlete, expected to take part in the Olympics?"

"N-no." Nick replied, surprised to hear about that. "Why didn't you compete?"

"I had a freak accident caused by a jealous teammate of mine." David explained as he touched the scare that ran down his face. "One day, I was weight lifting while trying to get ready for the Olympics, but a man I thought was my friend loosened the bench press without my knowing. I lifted the bar and did my usual regimen, but when I finished, the whole bench press collapsed once I replaced the bar. I fell to the ground, followed by the bar crushing my face. It was 500 lbs. Do you know how heavy 500lbs is?"

"N-no sir." Nick said as he started to wonder how crazy this guy could possibly be. "H-how did you survive?"

"I was lucky, or at least that's what the doctor told me. My whole face was ruined and I need surgery to survive. My entire nose was crushed and to this day I can't smell a thing. Also, I received heavy brain damage, something that still limits me to this day. I may never be able to compete in a physical activity, but I'll win this contest." He stated as he punched a hole into the ground due to his frustration.

"I-I-I see, that's horrible to hear." Nick stuttered as he looked at the hole. The man had managed to punch a hole that was about five inches deep into concrete. "So, is that how you put up with your partner's rancid smell?"

David laughed as he looked over at Garbu. "Yeah, I can't smell him at all. But, his attitude is stinks just like the rest of him. He shows no sportsmanship, instead choosing to do things dishonestly."

* * *

"S-so, Nick was kidnapped by some Mamodo?" Potat asked as Sarah and himself sprinted down the sidewalk. "D-did you get a good look of him?"

Sarah tried to picture what the Mamodo looked like, but it seemed like a blur now. "Um, I didn't get a good look, but he was short and chubby and his hair was all greasy." She started to explain before remembering something else. "He also had a lisp."

"Garbu." Potat stated as he followed the directions on the card. "He is known in the Mamodo world for being a coward who relies on others to do his dirty work. He sees himself as intelligent and above others, but he isn't too bright. He just likes sounding fancy."

"So, I take it that you two have met before." Sarah asked as they took a left turn and noticed an abandoned warehouse.

"You could say that." Potat replied as he forced open the doors tot eh warehouse.

"Garbu, I know you're in here!" Potat yelled as his voice echoed through the building. "Come out and fight like you wanted to!"

"Y-you took the Potat's Partner!" Garbu yelled as he jumped onto David. "W-why would you ever think of doing that!?"

"What's the big deal?" David replied as he forced the child off of him. "You never asked for a description of the Mamodo. Besides, you never warned me of any mamodo. Besides, it seems like you two might have some kind of history." He stated before hiding himself in the shadows.

"Of course not you fool! You just ruined our chances of winning!" Garbu yelled as he lowered his voice. "Coming into the battle for king, Potat was ranked as one of the favorites to finish in the top ten along with Thunder Emperor Zeno and Brago." Garbu was nearly pissing himself now as he thought about it.

" _Is Potat really that strong?"_ Nick thought to himself as he watched Garbu freak out. _"Maybe we'll be fine after all."_ Nick then realized that even though he couldn't get to Potat and Sarah, they could come to him. "Guys, I'm over here!"

"S-shut up! They might find us over here!" Garbu yelled as he slapped Nick across the face. "I will do worse if you speak again!"

"Potat, I heard something from this way, come one!" Sarah yelled as footsteps could be heard approaching.

"Hello Garbu." Potat stated calmly as he eyed his fellow Mamodo. "I think you have someone who's a friend of ours."

"Hi Potat, you look like you've grown a little. Adding some muscle to your arms I see, it makes you look strong." Garbu rambled on as he tried to shower his fellow Mamodo in praise as a way to escape. "I'm sure of it, you're going to become the Mamodo king for sure."

"Hand over my friend." Was Potat's response as he stared down Garbu. "Remember the last time I met you Garbu? You wouldn't want that to happen again, would you?"

"N-no! The boy's all yours. Enjoy." He quickly stated before pushing the boy right into Potat. "David, the spell!"

"SLIJO" David yelled out as Garbu opened his mouth.

Garbu started to spit out large globs of what seemed to be sludge. Potat quickly grabbed Nick and Sarah as he jumped out of the way of the sludge. It was good timing as well, since the sludge seemed to have melted the concrete floor.

"Look at that. It's some kind of acid like substance." Nick said as an idea came to him. "I think I know how to get out of this trap."

"Huh, you say something, Nick?" Potat asked as he gently put the two classmates down. "You figure something out?"

"Yeah. Next time he shoots that sludge attack, place my body in front of it." Nick said, receiving stares back from his two friends.

"Are you crazy!? That stuff ate through a concrete floor. Your body can't survive it." Sarah exclaimed as she pointed at the fresh holes in the floor. "Are you trying to die?"

Nick smiled at them, reassuring them that he knew what he had planned would work. "Garbu told me himself that this stuff is strong, so his acid should be able to free me from it. Once I'm freed, then we can attack back, hopefully."

"We missed, but it won't happen again." Garbu yelled as he faced his partner. "Launch the spell again, and put even more energy into it!"

David sighed as he opened the book again and flipped to the spell. "You better not miss this time, Garbu. SLIJO!"

"Yes, I can feel the power in this attack, excellent." Garbu cried out in joy as he started to spit out the familiar acid substance. "They won't get away this time!"

"Potat, throw me into that stuff right now!" Nick yelled while trying to sound confident, but in reality he was a complete wreck. _"I hope this works."_ He thought to himself as he felt the wind flow through his hair as he was tossed.

"What are they doing?" Garbu asked himself as he watched the human be tossed right at his attack. "Is he trying to commit suicide?"

"Look again." David said through their radio. "They're using your acid to free the trapped boy. You just unknowingly helped them."

"Curses! They tricked us, but it won't happen again. Prepare another spell immediately!" Garbu commanded as he started to grow nervous.

"Nick, catch!" Sarah yelled as she tossed the book right at Nick. "Let's show him what happens when he messes with our team." She said, giving him a thumbs up.

"Yeah..." He muttered as he flashed a thumbs up back. On the outside, he was trying to keep his composure cool, but his body was giving him away. His knees started to shake and his palms were sweaty once he realized the situation they were now in.

"Nick!" Potat yelled out as he ran up to his book keeper. "We can beat him real easily. The guys a coward. Just stay calm."

"R-right." Nick said as he opened the book. "We'll win this. This Mamodo doesn't deserve to become the King." He stated as the book started to glow brightly. "The first spell, FIORE!"

Potat started to run right for Garbu once the spell had been cast. Using his opponent's timidness to his advantage, Potat had managed to close the gap between them and was now only a few feet away from the rotten Mamodo.

Potat quickly raised his open palm and pointed it right at Garbu as the blast charged up. Once complete, the ball of fire shot at the tubby Mamodo with lightning fast speed, shocking Garbu.

Garbu quickly dove to his left, barely dodging the spell as it crashed into some crates, causing them to explode. "W-w-what... sp-speed and strength." Garbu stuttered as he started to sweat like crazy. "Even with three spells, I can't match his pure strength. We need to trick them."

"Hello there." Potat said as he stood on the boxes Garbu was hiding behind. "You weren't going to run away, were you?" Potat asked as he jumped off of the boxes and landed right behind him. "Let's continue this where you can't hide."

With a swift jab to the gut, Garbu fell forward and onto his knees, having a hard time breathing. He then felt himself being lifted up into the air by his fellow Mamodo. "P-please, have mercy on me." Garbu pleaded as he tried to think of a way out of this. "I overstepped my boundaries, I'm sorry!" He said, tears forming in his eyes.

"You attacked my friends even though they had nothing to do with this." Potat said as he threw Garbu back into the open. Potat chased down the boy before he pulled his fist back. "It's time for you to pay!" He yelled as his fist was swung forward.

Garbu closed his eyes as he waited for contact to be made, but to his surprise nothing came. Opening his eyes, the young Mamodo saw to his surprise, Nick holding Potat's fist back.

"There's no need to fight anymore, Potat." Nick said, trying to reason with the boy. "We're safe now. I can tell there's history between you two, but leave that out of this fight. I know you wouldn't want to win like this."

"Nick, let me go." Potat stated with a low growl. "We're not safe as long as he's around."

"What are you talking about?" Nick asked as he continued to restrain the Mamodo. "He isn't strong enough to hurt you."

"Tell them." Potat said as he stared at Garbu. If a stare could kill, Garbu would have been dead on the spot. "Tell them now otherwise it won't be pretty once we both return to the Mamodo world."

Garbu started to shake as he felt Potat's eye continue to glare at him. "I-I don't know what you're tal-talking about." Garbu lied as he slowly walked away.

Potat managed to break free of Nick's grasp and quickly put Garbu into a full nelson. "Tell them now!" Potat yelled as he tightened his grip on his fellow Mamodo.

Garbu yelled out in pain as Potat only tightened his grip. "A-al-alright. It was me! I convinced those Mamodo to beat you up!"

"Yes... All you need to do is beat this child up." Garbu stated as he handed three older looking Mamodo a picture of Potat. "Make sure he is unfit to compete just like you did the others. Leave him able to compete, but make sure he is injured."

One of the older Mamodo walked forward as he grabbed the picture. "This is the eighth one. You better be rewarding us handsomely."

Garbu chuckled at the Mamodo before speaking. "Why, of course. Do you not remember? You will all be members of my royal court once I become King. You three will become the three strongest Mamodo underneath me."

"So, this guy paid others to beat you up before this whole battle began?" Nick asked as he stared back and forth between Mamodo.

"Yes, but luckily they weren't too bright." Potat said as he released Garbu. He then kicked the mamodo swiftly in the chest as he was sent flying into the crates. "Get up and leave now, before I change my mind."

"Of course, thank you for your kindness." Garbu said, bowing to his other Mamodo before he grinned. "But, you didn't think I came into this fight without a backup plan, did you?"

"GO NYUSEN!" David yelled out as a blob on the ground started to expand.

Both Nick and Potat looked behind themselves as they watched what appeared to be a part of Garbu grow until it was large enough to swallow both of them. The started to descend down onto them, leaving them with little time to react.

"FIORE!" Nick read out, hoping that their spell could work.

Potat lifted his hand as the blast shot off and collided with the slime substance. The blast landed a direct hit, tearing right through the slime and appeared to weaken it.

"Alright, it worked!" Nick said, sounding excited about the chances of getting out of it.

"Don't get too excited just yet." Potat reminded him as they looked at the blob starting to reform itself. "This thing is indestructible."

Seeing only one option remaining, Sarah ran right to where the others were and pushed them out of the way just as the slime crashed down onto her. The slime shrunk to fit her body size as it immediately started to harden into its solid form.

"N-no, you were not the target!" Garbu yelled as he clenched his fists together. "I don't need you, I needed to incapacitate the two who are partners."

"Sarah!" Potat and Nick called out once they saw what had happened.

"A-are you alright?" Nick asked as he started to move closer. "Don't move, we'll try and get you out!"

"Don't come closer!" She replied before trying to face them. "I don't know if this has hardened completely. We don't need all of us stuck like this. I'm fine, just beat this guy."

Potat walked over to Nick as the duo stared down Garbu. "See, I told you we weren't safe as long as he's around. You should have let me finish it when I had the chance."

"Yeah, you're right." Nick said as he looked down, feeling guilty. "It's all my fault that we're in the situation that we're in." He stated, closing his eyes as a tear ran out of them.

"Yes, yes! Give in to your fears!" Garbu yelled as he rubbed his hands together evilly. "Just give us your book!"

"SLIJO!" David read from his hiding spot.

Garbu opened his mouth as he fired off the acidic sludge attack once more. "Now bow before your king!"

* * *

 **And… cliffhanger. Quick question, how are you guys enjoying the newer version of this story? I'm hoping the newer version of Garbu is much better now that he has been developed a little better.**

 **Update wise, I might put anywhere between one to three chapters up each week. You can also expect each chapter to be around 4000-6000 words.**

 **Thank you to everyone who read this, please leave a review of what you think.**

 **Next time: The fight against Garbu heats up especially now that he has Sarah as a hostage. Just as Nick and Potat are about to give up hope, things start to change for the better.**


	4. The True Strength of a Fighter

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to Zatch Bell.**

 **Last time, Nick was kidnapped by a Mamodo named Garbu who was known for being sneaky in the Mamodo world. Following his kidnapping, Potat and Sarah try to save him, leading to a battle to take place.**

* * *

Potat walked over to Nick as the duo stared down Garbu. "See, I told you we weren't safe as long as he's around. You should have let me finish it when I had the chance."

"Yeah, you're right." Nick said as he looked down, feeling guilty. "It's all my fault that we're in the situation that we're in." He stated, closing his eyes as a tear ran out of them.

"Yes, yes! Give in to your fears!" Garbu yelled as he rubbed his hands together evilly. "Just give us your book!"

"SLIJO!" David read from his hiding spot.

Garbu opened his mouth as he fired off the acidic sludge attack once more. "Now bow before your king!"

Nick watched as the slime continued to approach. "W-we need to do something..." Nick muttered as he grabbed his head. He was now starting to sweat and panic as he tried to think of anything. "Work you dumb brain!" He yelled out right as he felt something hit him.

"N-Nick, are you alright?" Potat asked as he stood up. "I couldn't have you get too hurt this early in the battle. I still need your help." He said jokingly as he flashed a smile.

Nick looked to his left and noticed the now present holes in the ground. He slowly realized that the sludge had caused it and that Potat had just saved his life. "Y-you saved me..." Nick muttered, unsure of Potat's reasoning. He then saw what looked to be a burn mark on Potat's gi. "Hey, are you alright? It looks like you got hit!"

"I'll be fine, but first we need to take care of this guy. If he's attacking us, then his book keeper is nearby," Potat stated, managing to stand up despite the burn marks on his back. "We need to find him and burn that book."

"R-right…" Nick stuttered as he watched the carefree boy he knew act like someone completely different. Gone was his goofy and childish nature, both replaced by a more serious nature. "But, where is he? When you and Sarah first showed up, he disappeared into the shadows.

Potat smirked at that response. "We'll just have to scare him out then. Listen, Nick, just keep launching our only spell. Don't worry about hitting anything, it's just being used as a way to lure him out."

Nick nodded in agreement as the boy opened the book to the page that contained their only spell. "Okay, you ready Potat? FIORE!" Nick yelled, the book lighting up as he did.

Potat lifted his hand as energy started to swirl all around his body. The white aura then moved right to his hand as he pointed it right at Garbu. The child quickly moved out of the way as a sphere of energy came crashing right into the boxes he had just been in front of.

"Even after being hit, he is still this strong..." Garbu stated as he wiped away sweat from his forehead. "There must be a way to defeat them!"

"FIORE!" Nick's voice rang through the warehouse as another explosion was heard. The dimly lit building was filled with brightness as the attack hit a stack of crates.

"Come on out, Garbu!" Potat yelled out as he slowly walked to another spot of the building. "You know that sooner or later I'll find you, Garbu! Just come on out and fight like a real Mamodo," he said, growing tired of this game.

" _Think, Garbu, what do you about this child that can be used to your advantage? He's strong, caring and smart..."_ The slimy Mamodo thought as he eyed the surrounding area. "Not like I can use anything like that to my advantage... unless..." He trailed off as he spotted Sarah still constrained by his last spell. "This might go better than I thought."

"FIORE!" Nick yelled once more. This time, he was starting to pant due to the strain of using so many spells consecutively. He watched as Potat blew up another section of crates, this time the outcome being a little more than just the crates blowing up. Unlike the previous times, a man came flying out of the blast holding a shining book. "Look, Potat! The book is right there!" Nick explained as he looked at his book. "FIO-," he started to read, only to stop when he heard a scream.

Both Potat and Nick looked in the direction of the scream. To their horror, Garbu had managed to sneak over to Sarah while they had been searching for him. "You didn't forget about me, did you?" He asked, his lips parting into a sinister smile. Garbu turned his head slightly, looking right at Sarah. "My, who is this beautiful young lady? It would be a shame if any harm would come to her," He stated, running his hand through her hair.

Nick grit his teeth together as he looked at the Mamodo. "You better not touch her!" He yelled out, his free hand was now clenched into a fist.

"Or what?" Garbu asked, knowing the answer already. "Last I checked, I hold all the power in this situation. I've analyzed your moves, you seem to have only one spell which can only be fired in one direction. Unlike you, I have multiple spells each with their own destructive power," He continued on as he started to tighten the substance that held Sarah.

"W-what are you doing to her?" Nick asked as he watched the substance wrap tighter around his classmate.

"It's simple, even without a spell, I can still control the sludge laying around here," He stated as he stopped controlling the substance. "As you saw just now, that includes my imprisonment here. Now, I want you to follow my orders very clearly, otherwise your pretty friend here won't last much longer as I'll increase the pressure put on her body by shrinking the substance until it chokes her."

Nick didn't say anything. He didn't know what to say, he had never been in a situation like this before. "W-what do you want?" Nick asked despite already knowing the answer.

"First, Potat must suffer for everything he's done today," Garbu stated as he walked forward. "Send the boy over to me, where he will receive a proper beating. Then, hand your book over so that I can burn it. Once these requests are met, you are free to leave."

Nick stood there, sweat running down his face. _"What do I do? If I listen, then Potat will be sent back home. If I don't then Sarah will get hurt. Think of something!"_ He mentally yelled at himself before dropping onto his knees.

"Nick!" Sarah yelled out, snapping the boy out of his mental battle. "Don't worry about me, just get this guy's book. Once you get it, everything will be fine."

"N-no," Potat stated, his head looking at the ground. He had previously been pointing his hand right at Garbu's bookkeeper, ready to attack the man. "He isn't bluffing. The moment we attack his partner, he'll hurt Sarah," the boy explained before walking towards Garbu, hands raised in the air.

"Don't, Potat! I'll be fine!" Sarah yelled out as she tried to stop the young boy.

"Shut up, won't you!?" Garbu asked as he looked over at David.

With a nod of his head, David acknowledged that he understood what his partner wanted. "DAREIDO!" He read off as the book glowed.

"Another spell!?" Potat stated, shocked by the fact that Garbu already had three spells.

Garbu didn't respond, instead, a purple liquid left his mouth as it struck Sarah's face. The liquid stuck to her mouth, sticking in place so that she couldn't speak.

"What did you do this time!?" Potat asked as he grew upset at what Garbu just did.

"Don't worry," he casually stated before punching Potat in the gut. "I didn't harm the girl in anyway at all. You should be more worried about yourself," he finished before kicking the boy in the back.

Potat stood back up after the two hits, a small amount of blood running down his face now. Letting out a small cough, the boy wiped away the red liquid before getting struck in the side of his waist. "No matter what happens, I'm still stronger than you. I didn't need to resort to cheap tricks." Potat stated as he was elbowed right in the back, this time spitting up a little blood.

"My, does the weak and helpless Potat think he can stand up to the next king of the Mamodo world?" Garbu sinisterly asked before lifting the boy back onto his feet. "In physical strength you might be stronger, but I am far superior in every other category," He explained before kicking Potat into a pile of crates.

"No," Potat moaned as he stood back up. "You don't know what true power is. I was told... by a close friend... that true power comes from protecting those who can't protect themselves."

"What do you know about protecting anyone?" Garbu asked before slapping the boy across the face. "Last I checked, you had no family, no friends and everyone hated you back in the Mamodo world," Garbu stated as he delivered a double ax handle down onto Potat's neck.

Once again, Potat stood back up, not giving into the slimy Mamodo. "Y-you don't know anything about me!" He yelled as he wobbly stood on his two feet.

"But, I know enough to realize that you're worthless," Garbu stated as he smacked the child again. The wounds were starting to add up now, Potat had a few more cuts along with blood running from them. The rest of his body was also bruised due to the constant hits.

"P-Potat..." Nick whispered to himself as he heard every word that Garbu stated. "Please, stop it!" Nick yelled as he ran at Garbu. "Just leave him alone, can't you see that he hasn't done anything to you!"

"SLIJO!" David read from the book once he saw Nick move.

Garbu smirked at the thought that he was going to be able to hurt both of these two fools. The mamodo opened his mouth right as the acidic slime emerged. The purple substance looked like a wave at the beach as it moved towards Nick.

The boy could only watch, knowing that he wouldn't be able to evade something like this. Just like last time, however, he felt something push him out of the way. Looking up, he saw Potat take the hit head on, his entire body burned by the attack.

"W-why?" Nick asked as he punched the ground in frustration. Tears started to form in his eyes as he looked at the image of a burned Potat standing before him. "Why did you have to save me!?"

"Be-because," Potat started to say with a hoarse voice. "Like I told Garbu, true strength comes from protecting others," he said smiling before both himself and his book started to glow.

"I-I can read a new spell..." Nick muttered to himself as he opened the book up. To his amazement, one of the pages was now in a new color and he could read it now. Smirking to himself, Nick felt like the battle was about to turn in their direction.

"Don't forget," Garbu spoke, snapping Nick from his trance. "Even with a new spell, you still can't attack. Unless you want to risk hurting her pretty little head," He stated as he held Sarah's head in his hand.

"Nick, I can't explain it, but I can feel that the new spell can help us," Potat whispered as he tore off the remaining part of his top gi. "You know I wouldn't say to use it unless it could help us now."

"D-don't even think about it!" Garbu shouted, realizing that they were still willing to attack. "I still have your friend held hostage!"

Nick paid no attention to the Mamodo, instead he opened the book to the page of the new spell. "Okay, here goes nothing. The second spell, FLIASH!" Nick read, the book glowing even brighter than before.

Potat instinctively raised his hands up to his head, palms facing towards his face. The brightness from the book immediately bounced off of his head and blinded everyone in the area except for Potat and Nick.

"I-I see, this spell isn't used to attack, but as a way to blind the enemy," Nick stated in awe as he saw everyone else covering their eyes from the sudden burst of brightness.

"Nick, we have to move and fast!" Potat yelled as he ran right for David. "No time to look around and be amazed!"

"Right," the boy stated as he ran over to Sarah to try and help her get freed.

"D-David, launch the spell!" Garbu screeched as covered his burning eyes. "Hurry, before they attack!"

"Shut up will you!" David yelled back, having had enough of the brat. "I can't concentrate enough to cast a spell. Besides, I can't even see the pages so I wouldn't be able to cast anything in the first place!" He stated right as he felt a small fist meet his face.

David dropped to the ground as he accidently let go of the book in the process. "Sorry about that, but I had to get the book," Potat stated as he helped the man to his feet. "Don't hold any of this against us, alright?" Potat asked before sprinting over to Nick.

"Just hold on, Sarah, we're going to get you out of this!" Nick promised as he started to try to peel away the liquid substance on her face.

The boy quickly reached up, grabbing the substance with his free hand. Once he realized how close he actually was to the girl, Nick couldn't help but feel his face heat up. _"Now isn't the time for this,"_ he mentally told himself, but regardless, he still felt his face heat up and his heart beat faster. He continued on, slowly and gently removing the sticky substance, making sure not to hurt his classmate. He had finally managed to get it removed right as he heard footsteps coming his way.

N-Nick, I got the book!" Potat yelled as he ran right into Nick's legs. Dropping onto the ground because of the collision, Potat quickly jumped back onto his feet as he handed the book over to Nick.

"B-but how?" Garbu asked as his eyesight started to return. "I know David was guarding it with his life!"

"Sometimes, things don't always go according to plan!" Potat stated as he looked at his fellow Mamodo. Nodding to Nick, he signaled that this was the end.

"FIORE!" Nick shouted as he tossed the book up into the air.

Potat immediately fired off his attack as it connected with the book, causing it to burst into flames. "Goodbye, Garbu. Maybe now you'll see where true power comes from."

"N-no, how could this happen? My dreams of becoming Mamodo king, crushed by you!" Garbu yelled as he charged right for Potat, ready to hit him. "I'll make you pay for this!" He yelled, completely vanishing right before he could strike Potat.

"W-we did it..." Nick muttered as he sat on the ground. Before he could react, he felt something else fall on top of him. Looking up, he saw that Sarah was now laying on top of him, the spell having worn off without anyone realizing it causing Sarah to fall.

"Thanks for braking my fall," Sarah joked as she looked right at Nick. Neither realized just how close they actually were, but Nick could see a clear image of Sarah's eyes.

"Just kiss already," Potat stated as he stood there with his arms behind his head. "Look how close you two are."

Nick's face turned a bright red once he realized just how close the two of them actually were. Sarah however laughed at the situation as she stood up. She then walked over to Potat and kissed him on the check. "Thanks for saving me, Potat," She playfully added as she stood back up.

Potat smiled right at Nick, hoping to get a reaction out of the boy. "I guess she likes me more than you, huh Nick."

Nick just stared at the boy, it was bad enough before, but now Potat would be giving him an even harder time than before. He didn't respond to Potat, but he still felt his face heat up a little. "Can we just head home? My parents are probably wondering where we are."

"Alright, we can get going," Potat said, only to fall once he tried walking. "I guess I over did it during the battle," the boy stated before laughing. He then tried to stand back up, but noticed Nick crouching in front of him.

"Get on," he said as he pointed at his back. "What? It's the least I can do after you saved me three times today."

Smiling, Potat climbed up onto Nick's back as the duo headed off for his house with Sarah with them.

* * *

"Mom! Dad! I'm home with Potat!" Nick yelled as he walked into the living room with Potat and Sarah. "I also brought a friend with me for game night."

No response, wondering what was up, Nick walked around the house looking for anyone. Once he made it to his room, he opened the door and placed Potat onto his bed. "We can't have you walking around in torn clothes," Nick stated as he tossed Potat a new gi. "I wondered why you had so many of these with you, but now I understand. If you go through one every time we battle, you'll run out of them."

Nick's room wasn't anything too special. He had his bed pushed right into a corner with Potat's new bed in the opposite corner. Across from the two beds was a small TV that was on a dresser. The only other piece of furniture was a desk which Nick did his homework on. The walls were painted white and had a clock right over the desk.

Within a minute, Potat was changed and ready to go. The three walked out of his room and back into the living room where he saw his two parents. "Oh, there you are, Nick," his mother stated as they saw the three kids approach. "I thought we heard someone," she said before noticing Sarah. "Oh, who's this? Is she your girlfriend?" She asked hopefully.

"N-no!" Nick replied as his face turned beat red. _"Why does everyone think that?"_ He asked himself before calming his heart rate. "S-she's a friend of mine who came along with me for game night."

"About that," his mother said, giving her husband a glare. "Your father has something to tell you."

Nick's dad stood up as he cleared his throat. "Well, you see," he started, looking very uncomfortable about whatever he was going to say. "My company has started to build a new software overseas in Japan. They've been having a hard time getting the coding correctly, so they're sending me overseas until the project is completed so there won't be any more game nights until I get back."

"Yep, he's just going overseas leaving the rest of us here!" He could hear his mother yell from the other room.

"It isn't forever and I can come and visit whenever I want to," his father added, wiping away sweat from his forehead. "The situation isn't as bad as it seems. They said you all could come, but between school and your mother's job I couldn't force you all to come along."

Nick stood there and just listened to his father continue on. After a while, Nick lifted his hand up, signaling for him to pause for a moment. "I'm coming," he calmly stated.

"Nick, don't talk crazy," his father replied as he stood up from the couch. "You have school and basketball. You can't just leave all of that."

"Basketball is finished for the year and besides, there are schools in Japan," Nick argued as he didn't break eye contact.

Hearing the conversation from the kitchen, Mrs. Rosum walked back into the living room. "There is no way I'm letting you go to Japan with your father!" She yelled, but stopped once she noticed how determined the boy actually was.

"Please, let me come with you!" Nick pleaded as he continued to stare right into his father's eyes. "It can be a good learning experience for me! The schools over there might actually give me a challenge and how many people can say they went to Japan."

Mr. Rosum was speechless. Ever since Nick could speak, he had never once made eye contact with anyone. Not only that, but in the past Nick had always gave up whenever someone argued with him.

"Honey," Mrs. Rosum stated as she looked right at her husband. "As much as I don't want him to leave, he's right. This will be a good experience for him."

Mr. Rosum sighed as he looked at his son. "Well, if your mother said it was fine, there isn't anything I can do about it," he said before getting real close to his son. "You know how scary she can be when angry," he whispered, making sure no one else heard him.

"Thank you," Nick stated as he walked out of the room with Sarah and Potat behind him.

Potat could hear someone sigh so he stopped walking. Turning around, he noticed Mrs. Rosum wipe a tear away from her eye. "What's the matter?" The Mamodo asked sincerely.

"Well, I'm nervous for Nick," she started as she sat down in a chair. "H-he's a shy boy. I'm worried that he won't make any friends over there."

Potat nodded, knowing exactly where she was going with it. "Don't worry, I'm going with him," he boldly stated as he pounded his chest. "I'll make sure he's fine while over there. I'll help him make a few new friends as well."

"Thank you," she softly replied before pulling the Mamodo into a soft hug. "Please, watch out for him."

* * *

"What was that about?" Sarah asked once they were in Nick's room.

"What are you talking about?" Nick asked as he pulled his suitcase out of a closet. "I didn't do anything wrong."

"I'm talking about going to Japan!" She yelled as a few tears formed in her eyes. "I thought you, me and Potat were a team! But I was wrong, I see that I'm nothing more than a third wheel since I don't have a Mamodo!"

Nick now realized what was wrong, Sarah felt hurt. "Hey, it has nothing to do with you. I figured that I could possibly find allies for Potat while overseas. We need to find a king eventually and we can't waste our time sitting around Boston," he explained, but it still didn't help the situation.

"B-but, what am I going to do now?" She asked as she turned her back to the boy. "I, I was enjoying our time researching the book and helping Potat."

Nick chuckled as he pulled out a piece of paper. He quickly wrote something down on it and handed it to Sarah. "Here, take this."

"W-what is it?" She asked before looking at the writing on the paper. "It's just a bunch of numbers."

"Look at it with a clear head. It's the number to my cell phone," he explained before pulling out his phone. "If you find anything out about the book, you can always call me," he said, smiling at the girl.

"A-alright, but don't think you can just forget about all the work we've done together!" She stated, extending a fist out to Nick.

He met the fist with one of his own. "I wouldn't forget no matter what."

* * *

"The flight to Mochinoki, Japan has now begun boarding. This is your last warning, the flight to Mochinoki has begun boarding!" The voice over the loudspeaker announced as Nick, his dad and Potat all made their way over to the terminal.

"You ready for this, Potat?" Nick asked as the duo handed their passes to the attendant.

"Yeah, but are you ready for it?" Potat teased as he followed behind his partner.

* * *

 **Nothing much to say about anything other than sorry for not putting this chapter up sooner. I know I said that it'll be updated at least 1-3 times a week, but last week was hectic for me as I was called in to work as it seemed like everyone called out.**

 **Anyways, Mochinoki City, I wonder what adventures these two will get into while here.**

 **Thank you to everyone who has read the story and continues to support it. Please leave a review letting me know what you enjoyed and how I can improve the story.**

 **Next time: While Nick and Potat are on their flight over to Japan, Sarah has a strange encounter with someone while she is down. What could this person want and how could she be able to help?**


	5. A Snowflake's chance in Hell

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to Zatch Bell**

 **Last time, Nick and Potat were caught in the middle of a battle with fellow Mamodo Garbu. After using some dirty tactics, Garbu seemed to be on the verge of winning when Potat managed to learn a new spell. Following Garbu being sent back to the Mamodo world, Nick found out his dad was heading to Japan for work and decided to come along.**

* * *

"The flight to Mochinoki, Japan has now begun boarding. This is your last warning, the flight to Mochinoki has begun boarding!" The voice over the loudspeaker announced as Nick, his dad and Potat all made their way over to the terminal.

"You ready for this, Potat?" Nick asked as the duo handed their passes to the attendant.

"Yeah, but are you ready for it?" Potat teased as he followed behind his partner.

The duo turned around one last time, waving back to the group that was still there. "See you all in a few months," Nick joked as the door shut behind him.

"So, they're gone until June?" Sarah asked as she looked up at Mrs. Rosum.

"Yeah, Nick plans on coming home during summer break," Mrs. Rosum explained as she started to walk away from the terminal. "Let's get going, I don't think you want to stay at an airport all day. I'll drive you home."

"A-actually, could you drop me off at the gym?" She asked nervously. She felt kind of awkward asking to be dropped off at the gym considering that it was further away. "I wanted to get some basketball practice in to get ready for next year."

"That's fine, it's actually closer to my house anyway," Mrs. Rosum explained as they exited the airport. "You know, you look familiar from somewhere, Sarah. I just can't remember from where," she stated to the girl.

"You must have seen me at one of my basketball games or just around the city," Sarah replied as walked over to the van. "I'm usually at the gym practicing after school, so you might have seen me there."

Mrs. Rosum shook her head back and forth. "There was somewhere else," she stated before snapping her fingers. "Of course! You were that girl from two years ago, the one who followed Nick around."

"No, you must be mistaken with someone else," Sarah quickly replied while throwing her hands in front of her body. "I've known Nick for a few years, but I never really hung out with him before."

"No, I'm sure of it. Just give me one second," Mrs. Rosum said as she dug through her pocket book. After a few seconds she found what she was looking for, her cellphone. "I have a few pictures that prove I'm right."

She then quickly searched through her phone, pulling up a few pictures from about two years ago. "These were back when Nick was in sixth grade, back before he started worrying about everything," she stated before pointing to the screen.

In the picture was Nick's old basketball team following their win in the league's championship game. Among the people in the picture who stuck out were Nick, Dom and Will. But, the one who caught Mrs. Rosum's eye was a young girl dressed in her own team's uniform.

"I thought it was kind of cute," she said before putting her phone away. "Little did I know that it was you. Now that I look back, you've been at all of his games," she said before a smirk crossed her face. "You like my son, don't you?"

Sarah felt her cheeks heat up when the question was asked. "W-what?" She stuttered as she was caught off guard. "H-he's just a good friend," Sarah stated as she tried to cool her face down.

Mrs. Rosum wouldn't take that as answer. "Well, if that's it, why did you attend every single game of his? And why were you so upset about him leaving for Japan?"

"Well, he's a good friend so of course I'd be upset at him leaving," Sarah explained as the car pulled out of the airport.

"That's good and all, but usually friends don't come to the airport to see him off. They would usually be in school," Mrs. Rosum stated in a matter of fact kind of way. "I think it's kind of cute. You can trust me, I wouldn't tell anyone."

Knowing that it was pointless, Sarah sighed. "Alright, I have a slight crush on your son," she stated as Mrs. Rosum smiled.

"I think it's great. You're perfect for Nick," She said seriously as they took another turn. "He's always so serious and worries about every little thing. You on the other hand seem to be easy going and fun to be around. He needs to relax at times," she said before a new idea crossed her mind. "Tell me, when exactly did you first like my son?"

Sarah looked at her kind of confused. It felt weird talking to Nick's mom about her liking Nick. "W-well, it started when I first moved here in fifth grade. At the time, I was the new kid and no one wanted to be my friend. Then one day, I was eating by myself at lunch when he sat down next to me," she explained, remembering that day.

* * *

 _Flashback_

" _Why did dad have to accept this job?"_ A younger Sarah asked. She was dressed in a red T-shirt and had blue jeans on. She had the same haircut back then, but instead of cowboy boats she had on white tennis sneakers. _"It was nicer back in Philly,"_ she thought before letting out a sigh.

Sarah looked around the table she was sitting at. With the exception of herself, it was completely empty. She didn't want to eat alone, but every time she tried to sit at another table she had been told that it was full. Sighing again, she bit into her sandwich.

Across the lunchroom, a group of boys were eating while being rather loud. "Man, I really need a haircut," one of the boys moaned. His hair wasn't actually long, just barely covering his ears. Instead, it was just how it looked, taking on the appearance of a large black cotton ball.

"Quit complaining, Nick, you know the rules, no cutting your hair until our team loses," a smaller boy stated as he hung his arm around the other boy's shoulders. "It's bad luck if you cut your hair!"

Nick just looked at him with a quizzical look on his face. "Dom, you are way too superstitious. There is no such thing as luck," he replied while taking Dom's arm off of his shoulder.

Nick felt a slap on his back as he faced Dom. "This is coming from the kid who ties his shoes three times before a game," he stated before the whole table started laughing.

Nick joined in with the other boys as he rubbed his now sore back. As he tried to turn and see his back, Nick noticed a girl sitting by herself. "Hey guys, why's she sitting all by herself?" He asked, pointing over at the new girl.

"I don't know," Will replied as he shrugged his shoulders. "Maybe she's just weird like that."

Nick crossed his arms as he looked over at the new girl. "Hey, guys, I'll be back in a little," he said as he stood up.

"N-Nick, where are you going?" Dom asked as he saw Nick pick up his tray as well. "Lunch isn't over yet."

"I know," he said, smiling at his table. He then pointed over at the girl who was sitting by herself. "I'm just going to sit over there. No one should have to sit by themselves."

Nick then walked across the lunch room and approached the new kid. "Hi there," he said, accidentally startling her. "You mind if I sit here?"

"G-go ahead," she replied softly, thinking that it was a joke being played on her. "Nobody else will let me sit at their tables."

Nick shrugged his shoulders as he sat down. "Take it from me, don't let these people bother you," he said before lowering his voice. "Some of these people can be pretty stuck up," he explained, giving her a toothy grin. "Anyway, my name's Nick."

"H-hi, I'm Sarah," she said, looking down at her food. "I just moved here a week ago with my dad. We lived down in Philly before."

"Well, welcome to Boston," Nick said, extending a handshake to the new girl. "If you have any questions, feel free to just ask me."

"Thanks," Sarah replied, giving off a small smile.

* * *

"I see," Mrs. Rosum said as they pulled into the parking lot to the gym. "It's kind of funny though. You two are now the complete opposite. You're the fun and confident one and my son is now the shy and timid one."

"Yeah, but, it's also because he's funny, smart and caring," Sarah said as she sighed. "I wish he'd stop worrying about what others think about him. It was like he changed overnight into this new person."

"Don't worry," Mrs. Rosum said as she pulled up to the entrance. "Sooner or later he'll stop worrying so much. But, in the meantime, we'll have to continue our talk some other time, it seems that we reached the gym."

Sarah looked out the window and realized that they were here. "Thank you," she said, jumping out of the car. "Um, can we just keep this between the two of us?" She asked kindly while twirling her thumbs.

Mrs. Rosum smiled at the girl. "You don't have to worry. I won't say a word," she replied while pulling out of the parking lot.

" _That was really awkward,"_ Sarah thought to herself as she walked into the gym. Shaking her head, Sarah walked through the entrance and headed straight for the gym. "I can't believe I just had that conversation," she muttered to herself as she walked onto the court, unknown to her that a pair of eyes were watching her.

* * *

"T-that's... good enough... for today," Sarah panted as she made her way over to a bubbler. Stopping in front of the water fountain, Sarah wiped the sweat off of her forehead before taking a sip of water. "I wonder what Nick and Potat are doing right now?"

Sarah had no time to think of an answer however as a loud crash came from the gym. Running back to the scene of the noise, Sarah only noticed that the ball rack was knocked over.

"Weird," she muttered before walking over to the rack. Lifting it up, she started to pick up the basketballs that were scattered. "I could have sworn I was the only one in here."

As she finished picking the balls up, Sarah couldn't help but get the feeling she was being watched. Turning around quickly, she caught what appeared to be two eyes darting under the bleachers.

" _Okay, I know that I just saw something under there..."_ Sarah thought to herself as she made her way over to the bleachers. Unsure if this was a good idea or not, the young girl took her time until she was standing under the bleachers. "Hello!?" She called out only to get silence as a response. "I know you're under here!" She yelled out as she crawled further underneath the bleachers until she could make out a figure.

"Please don't hurt me..." the figure muttered as Sarah drew closer.

Now closer, Sarah could see that the being was actually a little girl who appeared to be hurt. "What happened? Are you alright?"

"Just, get away," the person muttered as she tried to back away from Sarah, only to back into the end of the bleachers. "Please, I don't want to get you involved."

"Involved? With what exactly?" Sarah asked as she moved closer. Now sitting next to her, Sarah could make out a little more of her features. The girl had long, blonde hair and blue eyes. She was dressed in a light blue shirt that had a few rips in it and a pair of jeans. Her skin was covered in mud and cuts. And the backpack she had with her was all ripped.

"Just leave before something happens!" The girl yelled before pushing Sarah away from her. "I don't want anyone to get hurt because of me!"

Amidst the confusion, the girl's bag ripped completely causing the contents of it to spill out. Sarah looked, noticing that the only object in there was a light blue book similar to Potat's. Reaching quickly, the girl took it and wrapped her arms around it.

"Y-you're a Mamodo!" Sarah yelled out as she appeared to move closer. "You don't have to be afraid, I already know all about this battle for king."

"So you know why I need you to leave!" The girl cried out. It appeared that she had already been through so much. "Trust me, you don't want to get involved. Only bad things happen to people who get involved in this." She explained before a few tears started to trickle out before they turned into a stream.

Grabbing the young girl, Sarah brought her into a tight hug as she placed the girl's head against her chest. "Hey, it's okay. No need to cry. I know a few friends who can help you, you're safe now," she reassured the Mamodo as a light filled the bleachers.

"No! This is exactly what I was trying to avoid!" the girl yelled out as she pushed away from Sarah. "I didn't want to get anyone involved in this!"

Looking at the book, Sarah realized that this was exactly like how Potat's was after fighting Garbu. Reaching for the book, Sarah opened it up and noticed that some of the words were readable.

"GIRUGA!" She read from the book, causing the Mamodo next to her to react.

Opening her mouth, a beam of ice shot out and struck the bleachers in front of them. Looking up, the duo noticed that they were now a sheet of ice.

"J-Just give me my book and I'll be gone!" The girl yelled as she reached for the book.

Sarah pulled the book back and away from the girl's reach. "Oh no you don't, we're partners now. But, to be true partners, I need to know your name."

Sitting there silently, the young girl lowered her head so Sarah couldn't see her face anymore. "Why can't everyone be as nice as her?" She asked herself, hiding her voice within her clothes.

"Huh? Did you say something?" Sarah asked as she moved closer. "It's hard to hear with your head tucked into your chest."

"I said, my name is Cie," Cie muttered as she raised her head. She was about to speak again, only to hear new voices enter the gym.

"Brurrrr," one voice muttered as he tried to warm up. Looking closely, the two girls could barely make the duo out. This boy was around 6 feet tall, had fair skin, brown hair that was parted to the side, blue eyes and had a formal white dress shirt on along with a red tie and brown slacks. He also had black dress shoes and a vest draped over his shoulder. "It's cold in here. Too cold even with the A.C on."

"Maybe we finally found her," the second voice stated, putting emphasis on the 'her' part of his sentence. He likewise had hair that was as red as a raging fire, even looking just like on as well and had blue eyes as well. He was dressed in a brown tank top and red shorts. He also had a black scarf that covered his face except for his eyes and had black sneakers. Images of fire ran across his skin, glowing red just like the element. "I mean, we did follow her scent all the way here. She must be involved somehow."

Staying quiet, the two girls didn't budge at all. Sitting under the bleachers, they waited for the duo to leave. Their hearts raced in anxiety, knowing full well that they were probably outmatched.

"Alex, you know how much I hate the cold, do something about it," the second voice stated swiftly. By the tone in his voice, the two girls could tell that he was in charge.

"Y-yes, Enka!" Alex replied quickly, fear filling his voice. Flipping through his dark red book, the human stopped on a page, the words glowing brightly. "FAIGAR!"

Enka raised his right hand, palm flat to the ground, with a small ball of fire forming on his index finger. Without any effort at all, the ball of flame darted off of his finger and landed on the bleachers, catching the whole area ablaze.

"Let's go," Enka stated as he turned to leave the area. Alex hesitantly followed behind him, confused as to why they were running.

"B-But why? We know they're in there somewhere!" Alex stated as he followed the Mamodo out of the building.

Smirking, Enka turned around and faced his human partner. "I know that, but we'll be waiting outside. If they try to run, we get them if they stay inside, the fire gets them. Either way, we win."

"B-but, what about the human partner!? What'll happen to them?" Alex asked as he started to shake a little

Enka shrugged his shoulders before smirking at his partner. "Who cares? Everything that happens during this battle gets reversed at the end." He then started to walk out of the building, smoke following behind him.

* * *

"W-what... do we... do?" Sarah asked as she brought her shirt up over her mouth. The smoke was making it hard to breath and the fire was growing more intense, having already blocked off their exits except for the main one and parts of the ceiling were collapsing. The duo had made it from under the bleachers, but upon seeing their situation, knew that the Mamodo was still waiting for them. "He'll just... attack us once... we leave."

"Well, just use a spell," Cie answered calmly as she looked around. She knew her ice spell wouldn't have any luck working against a fire like this, but maybe she had another spell that could help.

Looking through the book, Sarah saw one page that was a different color than the rest. Just like last time, the young girl read the spell out loud. "GISHIELD!"

A blue, dome like shield emerged around the duo as the ceiling continued to collapse. The collapsing ceiling collided with the shield, but bounced off harmlessly as the duo watched everything going on. After a while, the entire building had burned down and there was nothing but ash and destroyed building left.

"Hmm, so, they didn't survive," Enka replied with a hint of disappointment. "I was hoping they would supply us with a challenge. So far, no Mamodo we have encountered has given us a challenge. The road to king is boring without a challenge," he stated before turning and leaving.

"Y-you don't even care about the people inside?" Alex asked as he followed the Mamodo. "I know we've done some crazy things, but there were never any people around to get harmed! We can't continue doing all of this"

"Alex," Enka stated as he stopped on a dime. "The building was deserted with the exception of the Mamodo and their partner. Remember why we do this... We don't have a choice."

"I-I know, but still..." Alex tried to reply, but knew it was useless. "I wish there was another way."

"I promise you, once we are finished, everything will be fine." With that, the duo vanished from sight, leaving a trail of smoke behind them.

* * *

Pushing the rubble off of them, Sarah and Cie emerged from underneath the destroyed building. Looking around, both girls saw that the entire building was nothing more than ashes.

"H-how did we survive?" Sarah asked as she stood up and tried to brush some of the ash off of her. "We were surrounded by flames, but weren't hurt."

Cie stood up and brushed soot off of herself as well. "That shield we used was pretty strong. Lucky for us," she stated before reaching for her book. "Attention passengers,"

Reacting quickly, Sarah moved her arm and the book out of the way. "What are you doing?"

"I told you," Cie replied as she tried to take the book again. The damage caused today was her fault. If she never came to the gym to hide, then that other Mamodo never would have followed her. "It's too dangerous for you. I'm going to take the book and leave."

Sarah wouldn't have it though. After today, she was determined to help Cie win the whole battle for Mamodo king. "And I told you, we're partners. That includes both the good and bad times. I'm in this until the end, and so should you," she said, reaching a hand out to the young Mamodo.

Cie could feel a few tears start to form in her eyes. Wiping them away, the young Mamodo reached out for Sarah's hand and shook it. Seeing that they were in agreement, Sarah led Cie to her house.

"So, do you think we stand a chance?" Cie asked as they walked down the street. "If that guy finds us, we're done for."

"I think we'll be fine," Sarah responded as she looked up to the sky. "I told you, I have a few friends who can help."

* * *

"Attention, passengers," the pilot started to say over the loudspeaker. "We have finally arrived in Mochinoki Airport. Please remember to grab all of your belongings and once again, thank you for flying with us."

Nick woke with a jolt and looked down only to notice Potat climbing over him. "What's the rush?" He asked while letting out a yawn. "You can't go anywhere while on a plane."

"But, we landed," Potat explained as he shoved Nick's face into the window. "Your dad already got off. I told him that I'd wake you up."

"Woah, we actually are here," Nick muttered as he looked out of the window. Despite being on a completely different continent, it didn't seem much different than Boston. It still looked to be a crowded place and he wondered if they would ever find his dad.

Stepping off of the plane, Nick looked over to Potat. The two boys made eye contact before they both let out huge grins. The beginning of their new adventures was soon to begin.

" _I wonder if we'll find any Mamodo here. And if we do, hopefully they don't all attack us,"_ he thought to himself as they walked down the terminal. These thoughts were in the back of his head the whole time, but now that they were there they had moved to the front of his thoughts. Nick started to sweat a little now, he now had no idea who they could trust.

* * *

"Okay class," the teacher stated as he pulled out a stack of papers. "Today I have some interesting news. We are fortunate enough to be participating in a student transfer program for next year."

"Where's it taking place?" One student asked as they were handed a form. "And how many are going?"

Sighing, the teacher finished passing out the form and walked to his whiteboard. "I'll cover all the information right here," he stated while writing everything down. "Like I said earlier, it'll take place next year. The school we are doing this with is Mochinoki Middle School. Yes, a middle school, but the curriculum is equivalent to what you would learn here. But, we can only send one student, so he or she will be randomly picked."

" _Mochinoki!"_ Sarah thought to herself as she looked over the form. _"That's where Nick and Potat are. If I can be the transfer student, then we can work together."_ She thought while filling out the form.

* * *

 **What, now Sarah is partnered up with a Mamodo!? Well, in all seriousness I did try to drop some not so subtle hints. But, who's this Enka and what is his true plans. Is he really here just for a good fight or is there more to him?**

 **Just a few things. The spellings for Cie's and Enka's names are actually just rewording of ice and the Japanese word for flame, kaen, respectively.**

 **I hope everyone is enjoying the story. Thank you for supporting the story and please leave a review saying what you liked, disliked, or just what I can improve on.**

 **Next Time: Nick and Potat are finally getting used to Mochinoki when it comes time for Nick's first day of school. How will the boy from Boston handle this new situation and how does Potat help? And what's this about a Mamodo?**


	6. Nick's First Day! Whatever will he Do?

**Last time: Nick and Potat started their journey to japan while Sarah had an adventure of her own. While practicing for basketball, Sarah stumbled upon Cie, a young Mamodo that was being chased. After being able to read her book, the duo hide from Enka, a Mamodo who isn't afraid to do anything to win. Using a spell, the duo survived a burning building.**

* * *

"Riiinnnggg!" The alarm blared through Nick's room, startling both boys awake.

"W-what's happening!?" Potat yelled out as he removed the pillow that was covering his face. "Who's attacking us?"

Realizing what was happening, Nick walked over to the clock and shut off the alarm. "No one's attacking us, Potat," Nick explained as he pulled out his new school uniform. "That was just the alarm I set to get me up for school. Today's my first day."

"That's right!" Potat yelled as he jumped out of bed. Grabbing a fresh Gi, Potat changed into it quickly before heading for the door. "I can't wait to see how school is here. I'm just sure of it that we'll have a great time."

"What do you mean by we?" Nick asked as he dragged the boy away from the door Placing him down on his own bed, Nick looked Potat right in the eyes. "Listen up, okay. You're not coming to school. I have enough pressure of trying to be just like them. I don't need you causing a scene," he explained before a few beads of sweat started to form. "Oh man, what if they don't like me, what if they all shun me since I'm new? Then what do I do?"

" _Wow, he made it 15 minutes before breaking down. That's five more than I expected,"_ Potat thought to himself in a joking manner. Realizing that this was important, Potat shook his head and cleared it of any jokes. _"Now isn't the time to laugh at his expense. He needs help and I think I know how I'll be able to..."_ he thought while eyeing Nick's backpack.

"Oh no, I'm going to be late!" Nick yelled as he sprinted out the door forgetting his backpack.

Noticing this, Potat used it to his advantage. "Now that he's in a rush, he won't notice the extra weight in it," he stated out loud as he climbed inside. Within a few seconds, Nick was already back home grabbing his backpack. Once it was in his grip, he sprinted out the door. _"Plan help Nick stay calm is going to be great. I'll be able to help him out all day!"_ Potat thought as a smile crossed his face. Moving around to get comfortable, Potat noticed that his spell book was in the bag as well. "I wonder why he has that in here?"

* * *

" _I can't believe it's already Monday,"_ Nick thought as he ran towards his new school. " _I spent all my time since coming here looking through Potat's book and besides the second spell, I haven't figured anything new out. I was hoping to be able to figure out some secrets of the books, but nothing. And now I have to go introduce myself in front of a new class. Nick what did you get yourself into."_

"Riiinngg," the school's bell went off as Nick entered the school. Heading off to the main office Nick received his schedule and learned which room he was in, which was room 2-2.

Looking at the paper, Nick realized he had been placed in a class that was one grade lower than what he was in Boston. "Um, miss, I think I was placed in the wrong class," he pointed out to the lady.

Looking at the paper, the secretary read it over before handing it back over to Nick. "There's no mistake. Based on the grade level you were back in the U.S, this is the correct grade for you."

Sighing, Nick left the office and hung his head in defeat. "So, already off to a bad start," he mumbled before walking off to go find room 2-2. "I just hope she's right about this being equal to my grade back home."

Finally finding the classroom, Nick knocked on the door and waited until a teacher came outside. The man was average height, was a little plump and seemed to be easy going. He was dressed in a dress shirt and dress pants. His hair was starting to go gray as well.

Looking at Nick, the teacher wasn't sure why the boy was standing outside his class. Realizing this, Nick handed over the paper he received from the main office. "Excuse me, sir," he started to say, making sure not to upset the man. "My name is Nick Rosum. I recently transferred to this school and was placed in your class."

"So, you're the new student," the teacher replied cheerfully. This surprised Nick, he wasn't expecting a reply like this. "Why didn't you just say so. I'll help introduce you before the class. I'll let them know who you are and then you can enter the room and finish the introduction."

* * *

"Please class take your seats and lower your voices. Today we have a new student joining our class," Spoke the teacher as he began to introduce Nick. "He is from the United States, and received nearly perfect scores on the entry exam. Please enter the room now son."

Nick listened from outside the room. _"It's time..."_ Nick thought as he felt his face heat up. He started to do his rhythmic breathing. He was told that it should help him stay calm, but right now he was too nervous to do it properly. Hearing the teacher finish, Nick opened the door and walked into the room.

Just like he thought. The entire class was fixated on him. Looking around, he noticed that every pair of eyes were locked onto him. "Thank...you," Nick tried saying while his heart was pounding. " _What should I say about myself? I don't want to sound dumb or too full of myself..."_

Nick was beginning to sweat he felt all the eyes on him as if they were daggers piercing into his back. "He-hello, my name is Nick." He now didn't know what to say. Should he talk about himself or about things he did back in Boston. " _Okay I started nice and easy with an introduction, but now what should I do?"_ His face was starting to red and sweat was forming on his forehead.

Potat peered out from the backpack and watched Nick. Noticing his behavior, Potat wondered what was going on. " _What is Nick doing? He practiced this with me last night. Oh well time to help him."_ In a blur, something jumped out of Nick's bag and landed in front of the class. "Hi, my name's Potat. As you know, this is Nick. He's sometimes shy around new people so I apologize for his silence right now. Believe me, once you get to know him he's pretty fun to be around and is a really nice person who helps others out. His hobbies include playing baseball and basketball, doing his schoolwork and reading." Spoke Potat as he counted each of Nick's hobbies off of his fingers.

Nick, in all of his nervousness didn't even notice the Mamodo until Potat had finished. Finally seeing the boy in front of him, Nick freaked out. "What are you doing here?! I told you to stay home!" Nick asked as he was becoming even more nervous. He was wondering what the teacher would say about this.

"Nick," the teacher started to say as he walked over towards the duo. "What is this child doing with you and who is he?"

"That I can answer," responded Potat politely, "My name is Potat and I'm Nick's friend. You see before we came to Japan I made a promise with Nick's mother that I would look out for him and help him if he ever needs help. So I noticed that he was nervous this morning and I tagged along without his knowledge. I wanted to keep my promise and make sure everything turned out fine." Potat's eyes glimmered with joy as he thought over his entire plan. He knew it was working, but in reality he was just stressing Nick out even more.

"Well then, considering this is his first day I'll let it slide," he stated before walking back to the front of the room. Facing Nick, he started to speak to the boy again. "Nick please take your seat now. You may have the empty one next to Mr. Takamine if you don't mind. Also please stop by the office to pick up your school issued bag." Explained the teacher as he pointed to the only empty seat in the room.

Nodding in agreement, Nick walked over to the empty seat and sat down. Taking his backpack off of his back, he placed it against the desk. Potat followed him and sat next to Nick, leaning against the back of the desk.

"Hi there," spoke the young boy who Nick was sitting next. He looked the same height as Nick, but had black hair which went in even more directions than Potat's hair. "My name's Kiyo, nice to meet you."

"Hi I'm Nick, which you already know." Began Nick as he rubbed the back of his neck. _"Didn't expect someone to talk to me already. Maybe this will be different than I thought_."

"Hey don't forget about me," interrupted Potat as he shot up off of the ground. He stood in between the two boys, making it hard to talk.

"I was about to before you interrupted me!" Nick yelled back as he pushed Potat onto the ground. He was about to say something else, but a noise coming from the hallway caught his ear. "Hey, did anyone else hear something?"

No one replied as they already knew what was about to happen. Immediately, the door to the classroom opened up and a young boy in a blue outfit was standing there.

"Kiiiyyooo!" The young boy yelled as he ran over to Kiyo.

"Not again," moaned Kiyo as he looked over at the boy. "I've told you countless times that you can't follow me to school Zatch."

Zatch looked down to the ground and noticed Potat sitting there. "But Kiyo, this guy brought someone," argued Zatch as he pointed at Nick and Potat.

Potat had been sitting there quietly ever since Zatch had arrived. Staring at the boy, his mind was running a mile a minute. _"Zatch is in the battle too. That means this Kiyo must be his book keeper,"_ Potat thought to himself. He then decided to try something and walked over to the blond Mamodo. "Hey Zatch how have you been. It's been awhile," he said, acting like he already knew the boy.

"Uhh, sorry but do I know you?" Zatch asked, obviously confused by this boys actions. He was sure that he had never met Potat before. Zatch would have recognized the hairdo for sure.

Potat was surprised by this response. Was Zatch trying to trick them or was he really this forgetful. Trying once again, Potat started to speak. "Zatch it's me Potat. You may not recognize me, give me one second," responded Potat as he grabbed his spell book out of Nick's backpack and showed it to Zatch. "See, I'm in the battle as well. I'm from the Mamodo World."

"What do you think you're doing!?" Nick yelled once he saw Potat's actions. Hitting him over the back of the head, Nick grabbed the book. "They could burn your book right now because of how you're acting."

"You're wrong Nick," argued Potat. "Zatch is a friendly Mamodo. We grew up in the same area. We didn't spend much time together but from what I know of him he is a kind Mamodo who wouldn't hurt anyone."

Kiyo hearing this got an idea. Looking over at Potat, the boy started to talk. "I see that you know Zatch from the Mamodo World. I was wondering if we could talk after school. I have a few questions to ask you about Zatch that need to be answered." Kiyo asked the boy with a serious face.

"Sure." Replied Potat almost immediately. He also had his own questions for the boy that needed answering.

* * *

Class went by fairly quick in Nick's opinion. Instead of worrying about class he was worrying about after class and if this meeting was a trap or if they could actually trust these two. Sitting there, Nick watched the clock count down the last few seconds of the day until... "Riiinnnggg!"

And with that class was over. Nick picked up his new bag from the office and then headed to the roof to meet Kiyo. " _You know, for someone as smart as Potat, the kid lacks some common sense. You don't go and show a possible enemy your book is there for the taking. He needs to think before doing something like that again,"_ he thought while climbing the stairs to the roof.

Turning to his left, Nick saw Potat walking at the same pace as he was. "Do you think we can trust them?" He asked his partner as they reached the door.

"Of course we can," Potat replied without hesitation. "Zatch would never try to deceive anyone."

"B-but, how can you believe him?" Nick asked as he thought through his mind for possible scenarios. "For all we know, he could be just like Garbu and do whatever it takes to win."

"I told you before," Potat started to say as he shook his head in frustration. "Zatch isn't like that. If anything, they're thinking the same way as we are."

Without another word, Potat opened up the door to the roof and walked through. Already waiting there were Kiyo and Zatch, not at all surprised by the arrival of Potat and Nick.

"Ah, thanks for coming," Kiyo started to say as he approached the duo. "The reason why I wanted to talk with you is because Zatch has lost his memories after arriving from the Mamodo World. I was wondering if you might be able to help us," Kiyo spoke while pointing at Potat. "Do you know if he has any family or just anything about him?"

Potat folded his arms across his chest as he thought. The young boy appeared to be in a deep thought, as sweat started to form across his forehead. "I'll be quick, Zatch didn't have any family that I know of. We're in the same boat, you see I have no family either. We both live in a neighborhood where children without families are taken by others. It isn't an orphanage though. Each house has one child to one caretaker my caretaker's house just happened to be near Zatch's. He was always peaceful, protecting even the wildlife from those trying to hurt it. I'm sorry, but that's all I know."

Kiyo stood there, letting every word soak into his mind so that he could remember it. "Don't worry, that was more than we expected anyway, thanks," Kiyo stated as he leaned against the railing. "So, Zatch has no family, but his personality never changed even after losing his memory." The duo were about to leave, when Potat stopped them.

"Before you get going, I have a question for Zatch," Potat stated as he walked over to the duo. "What kind of king do you want to become?"

"Wha..." Zatch muttered. He was still digesting the information Potat just told them and wasn't paying much attention to anyone. "Well, I recently met a Mamodo who was being forced to fight against her will here. I realized that from then on that I would become a kind king who wouldn't force Mamodo to fight in this battle if they chose that they didn't want to compete. That is the kind of king I want to be"

"I see, well then Nick, I made my decision," Potat said as he tugged on Nick's pant legs.

"Huh, already?" Nick asked as he walked over towards the duo as well. "We just met them today, isn't this kind of fast?"

Kiyo wondered what they were talking about. Then, when he saw Nick pick up his book he started to think for the worst. " _What! This Mamodo who seemed all peaceful a minute ago is going to attack us now!?"_ He seemed to relax however once he saw their next action. Moving slowly, Nick placed his book down onto the ground in front of the duo. _"This can't be happening, why did he put the book down?"_

Nick noticed the confused expressions and decided to explain everything. Keeping his heart rate under control, he started to speak. "I see that you're confused over our actions. Let me clear this up, we have no intention of fighting anyone unless we're attacked first. You see Potat doesn't wish to become king, instead he wishes to find someone who he believes can become an excellent king and help them win." Nick then walked over to the duo and faced them directly. "Can we trust you two to fight for the good of the Mamodo world?"

Before Kiyo had a chance to reply, Zatch opened his mouth and answered truthfully. "Of course, I need to become the Mamodo King no matter what! Then, those who wish to not fight won't have to!"

Kiyo couldn't help but smile at the way Zatch answered. But, then a new thought came into his mind. "Zatch! You should at least talk it over with me your partner first. No offense to you guys, but how can we trust them when we really don't know them."

"Kiyo, I don't know why but for some reason I trust them," Zatch explained as he stood next to Potat and looked at the boy. "They don't seem like the kind to lie. Besides Potat has done nothing but help people today. I trust them and so should you."

Kiyo sighed to let go of his annoyance. "Alright, Zatch, you're right. I'm just a little paranoid because we've already fought five Mamodo already," He then faced Nick, deciding to try and get to know him better. "Anyway, where do you guys live?"

"We just moved into a house right near the park," Nick explained as he pulled out a picture of the house they were staying at. "We've only been here for about four days."

Zatch recognized the house immediately, it was only a few houses away from his. "So you're the ones that moved in down the street! I guess we'll be seeing each other a lot. You'll have to come over and play." He ran up to the picture and looked at it. "Look, Kiyo, I can see our house in the background!"

Kiyo was starting to get annoyed with the young boy's antics. He could put up with him for a while, but after a whole day of it he just wanted to hurt the boy. "Zatch they don't have time to play right now they're busy unpacking!" Kiyo yelled as he pushed the hyperactive boy down. "But anyways you guys should really come over sometime."

"Well, we've got to get home right Nick?" Potat asked as he picked up his book and placed it in Nick's bag. "You have homework to do, plus dinner will be ready soon. We'll see you tomorrow Kiyo and Zatch."

Nick was nodding in agreement up until the moment Potat mentioned coming to school again. "Oh no. Tomorrow you're staying home," answered Nick as he picked Potat up. "I will not have you annoy me in school every day."

"B-but, Nick, I'm supposed to help you!" Potat argued as he was carried away. "I can't help if I'm stuck at home."

"I-I'm sorry... it ended this way. B-but I have to get home," Nick said while waving bye to the other Mamodo pair.

* * *

"Zatch," Kiyo muttered after Nick and Potat left.

"Yeah Kiyo?" Zatch asked as he waited for his friend to continue on.

Kiyo stood there for a second with a blank expression on his face as he continued to stare at the door. "Those two are different, but I think they'll really help us make you become king."

Zatch tilted his head in confusion. Why was Kiyo saying things like this? "Kiyo, why do you think they're different?"

Kiyo sighed as he shook his head. "What Mamodo doesn't want to become king? That Potat is the only one we've meet so far who wants to help someone else become king."

Zatch smiled at the thought. They were different, but in a good different kind of way. "Yeah, you're right. But, now we have friends we can trust in this battle. It might be helpful since it seems every Mamodo has come here looking for me," he stated as images of his battles raced through his head. Putting them off to the side, Zatch started to think about the days ahead instead of the past. "I can't wait until tomorrow, Kiyo. We'll be able to play with them in school."

Kiyo had no had enough. Looking down at Zatch, the genius finally yelled at him. "Oh no! I don't know how many times I have to tell you this, but, stop following me to school!"

"But Kiyo, it's boring at home! At least here I can play with everyone," Zatch reasoned as he tried to make Kiyo feel guilty about leaving him alone at home.

"It won't work, Zatch," Kiyo told him, already knowing what the Mamodo was trying to do. "Besides, school isn't a time to play around, it's a time and place where we all go to try and become smarter individuals." With that, Kiyo started to walk home.

"But, the teacher's wife comes in," Zatch stated, trying to figure out a way for him to come. "Plus Kane just talks about dinosaurs, Iwashima does UFO calls and Yamanaka draws baseball doodles. I think they're having fun."

"Well," Kiyo began before pausing. There really was nothing he could say about them goofing around. "I don't have a say when it comes to what they do. You on the other hand, I can. Come on, let's get home."

"K-Kiyo! Wait up!" Zatch yelled as he chased after his partner.

* * *

 **Nick and Potat have officially met Zatch and Kiyo and Potat has decided that Zatch is the Mamodo he wants to become king. What kind of adventures will this group get into and how will they get out of them?**

 **I'm sorry if a few of the chapters are boring. It's just the problem of world building. The chapters are going to get more interesting and contain more action to them.**

 **Thank you for supporting the story and please leave a review saying what you liked, disliked, or just what I can improve on.**

 **Next Time: Strange things are going on around Mochinoki City, items are being stolen out of thin air. To add to it, a Mamodo appears to fight Zatch, but, there's a catch. Can Zatch stop the Mamodo and figure out who the thief is?**


End file.
